What is Turf Toe?

Posted in October 13th, 2022

Turf toe is a common injury that happens in sports where the big toe is extended past its normal limits while the ankle is pointed downwards at the same time. The injury occurs to the bottom surface of the big toe at the joint itself.

Turf toe injuries are classified into 3 different grades:

• Grade I injuries are considered less severe and are typically more over stretching of the tissues than anything. They will present with minimal swelling or tenderness. Grade I injuries are typically treated with icing, taping, an an in-shoe orthotic. The person is allowed to return to their sport(s) at their tolerance and do not usually miss a lot of time.
• Grade II injuries are a partial tear of the capsule of the joint. This grade of injury is partially treated by not allowing the person to place weight on the foot and missing at least 2 weeks from their sport(s).
• Grade III injuries are complete tears of the tissue on the bottom of the big toe. The individual will miss significant time from their sport(s) sometimes more than 6 months. Some of these injuries will unfortunately fail conservative treatment and require surgery.

The number of turf toe injuries has increased, but this is mainly because the amount of athletes participating in sports has increased. The NCAA has estimated that college football players experience a range of 0.46 to 0.53 turf toe injuries per team per season. Whereas the NFL has estimated turf toe injuries to occur as high as 11%.

If you have potentially suffered a turf toe injury, then call your physical therapist today!

Reference List

Vopat ML, Hassan M, Poppe T, et al. Return to Sport After Turf Toe Injuries: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine. 2019;7(10):N.PAG. doi:10.1177/2325967119875133