Turf toe sounds like a minor injury that only involves a single toe, however it can be a career ending injury like it was for Deion Sanders. It commonly occurs in athletes who play sports on artificial turf, hence the name “turf” toe. This injury occurs when athletes bend their big toe beyond its normal flexibility. Cleats often get stuck in divots in artificial turf leading to hyper extension of the toe. Hyper extension of the big toe can take place every time the athlete pushes off with their toes to start running. This motion occurs multiple times during every game and practice eventually over time the big toe becomes sprained.
The severity of the injury is graded from 1 to 3
|
Grade |
Injury |
Treatment |
|
1 |
Mild sprain |
|
|
2 |
Partial tear of the capsule and ligaments |
|
|
3 |
Complete tear of the capsule and ligaments |
|
Physical therapy should also be implemented to prevent stiffness in the joint and gain adequate range of motion. Surgery is often not needed, but is an option for some cases.
Foot& Ankle Doctors, Inc recommend athletes who return to sports should have their shoes modified with a steel shank or stiff insoles to restrict hyper extension of the toe.