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Symptoms
By Mayo Clinic staffSigns and symptoms of foot drop may include:
- Difficulty lifting the front part of your foot, which is sometimes the only sign of foot drop
- Dragging your foot on the floor as you walk
- Slapping your foot down onto the floor with each step you take
- Raising your thigh when you walk, as if you were climbing stairs (steppage gait)
- Pain, weakness or numbness in the foot
Foot drop typically affects only one foot. Depending on the underlying cause, however, it's possible for both feet to be affected.
When to see a doctor
If you can't lift your foot or you drag your foot when you walk, consult your doctor.
- Stewart JD. Foot drop: Where, why and what to do? Practical Neurology. 2008;8:158.
- Tural S, et al. Foot drop: The first sign of an intracranial tumor? Journal of Clinical Neuroscience. 2007;14:490.
- Ropper AH, et al. Disorders of stance and gait. In: Ropper AH, et al. Adams & Victor's Principles of Neurology. 9th ed. New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill Medical; 2009. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aid=3630849. Accessed Sept. 21, 2009.
- NINDS foot drop information page. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/foot_drop/foot_drop.htm. Accessed Sept. 21, 2009.
- Sackley C, et al. Rehabilitation interventions for foot drop in neuromuscular disease (Review). Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 2009:CD003908.
