Metatarsal 1 (right) — first metatarsal (great toe)

Function

Shortest and thickest of the five, carrying roughly a third of standing foot load. Its head rides on two sesamoid bones beneath the ball of the great toe.

Landmarks

• Base
• Shaft
• Head

Articulations (joints)

• Medial cuneiform
• Adjacent metatarsals
• Proximal phalanx of the great toe (metatarsophalangeal joint)

Clinical relevance

Hallux valgus deviates the first metatarsal medially, crowding the toes into a bunion; sesamoiditis and stress fractures afflict runners here.