The foot is the end part of the lower limb, which has a locomotive and supportive function. It is made of numerous - as many as several dozen - bones and many muscles and ligaments. But what is the exact structure of the foot and what diseases can affect this particular part of the human body?

Footis an organ that is exclusive to primates. So, apart from man, it is also present in great apes, but its structure is slightly different, therefore it can be said with certainty that the human foot is a unique creation. Leonardo da Vinci himself used to say that "the human foot is a machine of masterful construction and a work of art" - just as the other part of his thesis can be argued, you definitely have to agree that the foot structure is extremely complicated.

Foot: parts

There are generally three parts of the foot, which are:

  • metatarsus,
  • stęp,
  • toes.

Generally speaking, the structure of the foot is much more complicated than one might imagine - there are as many as 26 different bones within one foot only.

Foot: walk

The tarsal bones include the following structures:

  • ankle bone,
  • calcaneus,
  • navicular bone,
  • cube,
  • wedge-shaped bones (medial, intermediate and lateral).

The talus bone has three parts, which are the stem, neck, and head. In the lower part of the shaft, the talus connects to another tarsal bone - the calcaneus, while the head of the talus connects to the navicular from the front and to the calcaneus from the bottom.

  • The calcaneus bone is one of the largest bones in the tarsus. It has an appendage, which is referred to as the support of the talus - it has the central articular surface. A heel tumor can be distinguished on the posterior surface of the calcaneus. On its lower surface there are two appendages - lateral and medial. The lateral surface of the calcaneus is also important, as it is on top of the sagittal block - underneath it and above it, the sagittal muscle grooves are located.
  • The navicular is located between the talar bone and the wedge bones. The front surface of this bone is connected to the wedge-shaped bones,the posterior, in turn, connects to the head of the talus. It is located on the medial side of the foot (i.e. closer to the midline of the body).
  • The cubic bone is located on the side of the tarsus. From the back it connects to the calcaneus bone, from the medial side to the scaphoid bone and lateral wedge bone, and from the front to the 4th and 5th metatarsal bones.
  • Wedge-shaped bones are located anteriorly from the navicular. The medial wedge bone connects with the 1st and 2nd metatarsal bones and with the intermediate wedge bone. The lateral wedge bone connects to the 3rd metatarsal bone, while the intermediate wedge bone is the smallest and adjoins the navicular bone, other wedge-shaped bones and the 2nd metatarsal bone.

Foot: metatarsus

There are five metatarsal bones. They have three parts, which are:

  • base,
  • shaft,
  • head.

The bases of the metatarsal bones connect to the cubic and wedge-shaped bones, while their heads adhere to the bones of the toes. They are of different length. The longest of these is the second metatarsal.

The construction of the fifth metatarsal bone is also characteristic, as it has tuberosity on its surface.

Foot: toes

Within the foot, as is well known, there are correctly five toes. The big toe has two phalanges: the proximal and distal phalanges, their function is extremely important because they provide support to the foot.

The remaining four toes of the foot have three phalanges, which are the proximal, middle and distal phalanges.

Foot: joints and ligaments

The foot has numerous articular connections - they occur both between the bones within it and between the bones of the foot and the other bones that make up the lower limb.

First of all, it is worth mentioning here:

  • ankle joint: it consists of the ankle block, the tibia and both ankles; it is a hinge joint, reinforced by ligaments: medial and lateral collateral,
  • ankle-calcaneus joint: formed by the talus, calcaneus and scaphoid bones, in which there are generally two joints:
    • ankle-calf joint (strengthened by posterior talo-calcaneal ligaments, medial and anterior, lateral and interosseous)
    • and the ankle-scaval joint (strengthened by the plantar-calcaneal ligaments, the talo-femoral ligament and the calcane-scavular ligament),
  • calcane-cubic joint: it is the connection between the calcaneal and cubic bones, it is strengthened by the calcane-cubic and calcane-cubic ligamentsdorsal, long plantar ligaments and plantar-cubic ligaments,
  • sphenoid-scaphoid joint: it consists of wedge-shaped bones and cubic bone, it is strengthened by the wedge-navicular ligaments: interosseous, dorsal and plantar,
  • intersphenoid joints: connections between individual sphenoid bones, which are reinforced with dorsal, plantar and intersphenoidal ligaments,
  • metatarsal tarsometatarsal joints: the junctions of the sphenoid and cubic bones with the metatarsal bones, functionally generally considered as one joint that is supported by the dorsal tarsometatarsal plantar ligaments and the wedge-metatarsal interosseous ligaments,
  • intermetatarsal joints: located between the metatarsal bones, more precisely between the second and fifth of them, within them there are metatarsal dorsal, plantar and interosseous ligaments
  • metatarsophalangeal joints: connections between the phalanges of the toes and the heads of the metatarsal bones, which are strengthened thanks to the plantar and transverse collateral ligaments,
  • interphalangeal joints of the foot: located between the phalanges of the toes and strengthened with collateral and plantar ligaments.

Foot: muscles

It probably comes as no surprise that the foot has not only a large number of bone structures, but also many different muscles. Generally, the foot muscles are divided into the muscles of the back of the foot and the muscles of the sole of the foot - the former are innervated by the deep sagittal nerve, and the latter by the tibial nerve.

The muscles of the back of the foot include the following muscles:

  • extensor muscle of the fingers,
  • short toe extensor muscle.

The muscles of the sole of the foot are divided into three groups - these are the muscles of the medial eminence, the muscles of the intermediate eminence and the muscles of the lateral eminence.

The medial eminence muscles include:

  • toe abductor muscle,
  • big toe flexor,
  • toe adductor muscle.

Within the muscles of the intermediate eminence, the following can be mentioned:

  • finger short flexor,
  • trapezius muscle,
  • roundworm muscles,
  • interosseous muscles of the sole,
  • dorsal interosseous muscles.

The last group of muscles in the sole of the foot - the lateral eminence muscles - include:

  • little finger abductor muscle,
  • short flexor muscle of the little finger,
  • the opponent's muscle of the little finger.

Foot: vascularization

The foot is vascularized by the dorsal artery of the foot and the lateral and medial plantar arteries. The dorsal artery of the foot is derived from the anterior tibial artery and ultimately divides into the deep plantar artery and the dorsal first metatarsal artery, and it also gives off such branches as:

  • medial tarsal arteries,
  • tarsal lateral artery,
  • arcuate artery.

Both the lateral plantar artery and the medial plantar artery are derived from the posterior tibial artery.

In the case of venous vascularization in the foot area, there are superficial and deep veins. The first of these are formed by two venous arches: the dorsal and the plantar. These arches are connected by medial and lateral marginal veins. They eventually extend into two veins - saphenous and saphenous.

The deep veins of the feet are in turn:

  • dorsal veins of the foot,
  • lateral plantar veins,
  • medial plantar veins,
  • metatarsal plantar veins.

The above-mentioned venous vessels finally form the plantar venous arch.

Foot: innervation

The muscles of the foot - as mentioned above - are innervated by the deep sagittal and tibial nerves. The skin on its dorsal surface is innervated by the superficial sagittal nerve, while the skin in the plantar part of the foot is supplied by the medial plantar nerves (2/3 of the medial part) and the lateral plantar nerves (1/3 of the lateral part).

The skin of the plantar part of the toes is in turn innervated by branches originating from the medial plantar nerve and the lateral plantar nerve.

Foot: diseases and their detection

Diseases of the feet are a very broad category - there can be distinguished individuals related to the dysfunction of bone structures and ligaments, as well as problems affecting only the skin of the feet.

In general, the diseases that may affect the foot include:

  • dislocations and fractures of the foot structures,
  • flat feet,
  • hallux valgus (commonly referred to as hallux),
  • changes in the joints of the foot, resulting from rheumatoid arthritis or osteoarthritis,
  • gout,
  • Morton's neuralgia,
  • foot calluses,
  • athlete's foot,
  • foot nail fungus,
  • ingrown toenails.

The diagnosis of foot diseases may be based on a variety of tests. The basis is the physical examination of the foot. Thanks to it, it is possible to assess the mobility of individualfoot structures, observing fungal changes on the skin or valgus of the toe.

Imaging tests are also used in the diagnosis of various abnormalities related to the foot, such as:

  • RTG,
  • computed tomography
  • or magnetic resonance imaging.
  • Foot pain - causes. What disease is manifested by foot pain?
  • Metatarsal fracture - symptoms. Treatment and rehabilitation of a metatarsal fracture
  • Hollow foot - causes, treatment and prevention
  • Athlete's foot - causes and symptoms. What is the treatment of an athlete's foot?
  • How to take care of your feet - a practical guide to foot care

Category:

Anatomy