23/04/2026
* HARD CORNS *
Tiny but oh so painful!
Corns are concentrated areas of hardened, built up skin cells that form as a result of too much pressure on the skin over a boney prominence.
Repeated stress damages the skin until it’s unable to repair itself at the same rate as the stress.
In an effort to protect the underlying tissue, excess skin forms in the area.
Corns form when the skin forms a plug of harder skin to protect itself. This plug is pushed back into the skin and looks like an inverted cone. This cone-like structure is often referred to as the nucleus or core.
As the mechanical stress increases, the nucleus extends down and presses on the inner layer of the skin and even nerves, resulting in pain.
Common areas where corns may form are over the top of toe joints, ends of toes, under the balls of the feet or over any boney protrusion. Over time, the fatty pad tissue that cushions our metatarsals (balls of the feet) dissipates & with constant pressure, hard skin (calluses) or corns may form.
Corns are painless to remove, they do not delve into the vascular/blood layer and of course, are best treated by a podiatrist. 👩⚕️
It is important to note that corns can not be ‘killed off’ unlike a verruca & as previously mentioned, are the result of the body trying to protect itself by producing extra layers of skin. Corns occur due to an underlying mechanical or boney pressure problem and often require regular maintenance.
We can advise you on footwear, preventative padding to protect the vulnerable area where the corn was & delay recurrence of your corns and of course what type of moisturiser is best suited to your skin.
If corns are making you miserable, contact us today and make an appointment:
☎️ 03 351 6767
