I’ve been posting on all sorts of these threads tonight, but I am awake because I think I have GOUT (it would suddenly make sense of many symptoms I’ve been having over the past year or two – night sweats, stiffness/swelling in joints, dehydration … and now shooting pain at the base of my toe, which is a main M.O. of gout!)
Have you had any blood work to check kidney functioning, or uric acid levels?
Too much uric acid can lead to crystallization in your joints (as well as kidney stones) and cause gout, or arthritis. This tends to manifest in foot, knees, ankles, fingers, sometimes wrist. I have noticed I have a lump that has developed on one finger joint, and it is sometimes stiff and sore. And now I get shooting pain / inflammation in the base of my big toe. Other problems I have had have been bursitis in my knees, and ankle problems (sprains, popping/rubbing joints)
These problems get worse if I drink alcohol – these days, even one glass can cause me to wake up with shooting pain. I might have to give up drinking altogether. Also, I’m not sure but I took azithromycin (an antibiotic also known as z-pack, but it’s normally 3 days and my doctor prescribed a 10 DAY regimen) when I got severe pneumonia year ago… my kidney/gout problems (night sweats, rash, joint pains) seemed to get worse ever since then.