- Physical Examination
- Surgical Examination
- Ophthalmology
- Clinical Skills
- Orthopedics
- Surgery Videos
- Laparoscopy
- Pediatrics
- Funny Videos
- Cardiothoracic Surgery
- Nursing Videos
- Plastic Surgery
- Otorhinolaryngology
- Histology and Histopathology
- Neurosurgery
- Dermatology
- Pediatric Surgery
- Urology
- Dentistry
- Oncology and Cancers
- Anatomy Videos
- Health and Fitness
- Radiology
- Anaesthesia
- Physical Therapy
- Pharmacology
- Interventional Radiology
- Cardiology
- Endocrinology
- Gynecology
- Emergency Medicine
- Psychiatry and Psychology
- Childbirth Videos
- General Medical Videos
- Nephrology
- Physiology
- Diet and Food Health
- Diabetes Mellitus
- Neurology
- Women Health
- Osteoporosis
- Gastroenterology
- Pulmonology
- Hematology
- Rheumatology
- Toxicology
- Nuclear Medicine
- Infectious Diseases
- Vascular Disease
- Reproductive Health
- Burns and Wound Healing
- Kidney Zone Podcast
- Other
Burning feet
Category: Brain & Nerves · All brain & nerves symptoms
What it can feel like
Burning feet means a hot, burning or prickling pain in the soles, often worse at night and in bed, sometimes with tingling or numbness. It is a classic small-nerve-fibre symptom: the tiny nerves carrying pain and temperature signals misfire.
Possible causes
A symptom can have many causes, and most are not serious. The lists below group conditions this symptom can be associated with — common causes first. They are possibilities to discuss with a clinician, not a diagnosis.
Common causes
Burning feet can be associated with long-standing pressure or footwear, athlete's foot and other skin causes, vitamin deficiencies (especially B12 and B6 excess or deficiency), alcohol, and thyroid problems.
Other possible causes
Burning feet can also be associated with peripheral neuropathy — most often from diabetes or pre-diabetes — where the longest nerves fail first, producing a stocking distribution of burning, tingling and numbness.
Red flags — when to seek help promptly
- Burning feet with numbness and any foot ulcer or skin break (especially in diabetes) — prompt assessment
- Burning that ascends with increasing leg weakness
- Burning feet with unexplained weight loss or heavy alcohol use needing support
- Burning feet that begin after chemotherapy or a new medicine
What a clinician may do
A clinician will examine sensation (including with a fine filament), reflexes and pulses, and arrange blood tests for sugar, B12 and thyroid function. Diabetes control is optimised; nerve-pain medicines and foot protection advice form the management, with neurology referral for atypical patterns.
Related guides on MedicalVideos.com
Frequently asked questions
Why is it worse at night?
Without daytime distractions, the brain notices the misfiring signals more; warmth under bedclothes also lowers the firing threshold of damaged small fibres. Cooling the feet, keeping bedclothes off them, and nerve-pain treatments timed for the evening are standard measures.
Why might nerve tests be normal if it hurts so much?
Standard nerve conduction studies test the large fibres (touch, vibration, strength). Burning pain travels in small fibres, which those tests cannot see — so normal conduction studies with burning feet point to a small-fibre neuropathy, assessed clinically and by blood tests or skin biopsy.
Related symptoms — Brain & Nerves
Browse the B section of the A–Z list or return to the Symptoms A–Z hub.