Bunions should i have surgery

Should I think about having surgery? Related Articles. When Is Surgery Necessary for Hammertoe? Trending Topics. What Parents Need to Know. Share this article via email with one or more people using the form below. Send me expert insights each week in Health Essentials News. I think they might work for me. Is surgery a good choice if you want it mainly to improve the way your foot looks? Are you clear about which benefits and side effects matter most to you?

Do you have enough support and advice from others to make a choice? Author: Healthwise Staff. Medical Review: William H. Blahd Jr. This information does not replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise, Incorporated, disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information.

Your use of this information means that you agree to the Terms of Use. Learn how we develop our content. To learn more about Healthwise, visit Healthwise. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated. Updated visitor guidelines. Bunions: Should I Have Surgery? Get the facts. Your options Have bunion surgery. Don't have surgery. Try other treatment for bunions.

Key points to remember Surgery for bunions usually isn't done unless you have already tried other treatment and it did not relieve your pain. Other treatment includes wearing shoes with lots of room for your toes and using pads and supports in your shoe for protection and comfort. Surgery may be right for you if your toe is too painful, if your bunion is very big, or if you can't easily do your daily activities.

It's not clear how well bunion surgery works or which kind of surgery is best. How well the surgery works depends on how bad your bunion is, the type of surgery you have, and your surgeon's experience. Your expectations will play a big role in how you feel about the results of surgery. If you want surgery mainly to improve the way your foot looks, you may be disappointed.

What is a bunion? What are the risks of bunions? Some people are embarrassed by how their bunion looks. What are the types of bunion surgery? Types of bunion surgery include: Removing the part of the foot that is bulging out.

This procedure is called exostectomy or bunionectomy. Realigning the tissues around the big toe joint. Making small cuts in the bones of the foot and moving the bones into a more normal position. Removing bone from the end of the first metatarsal bone. Both the big toe and the metatarsal bones are then reshaped. Fusing the big toe joint. The surgeon removes part of the joint so the bones join together, or fuse.

Fusing the joint where the metatarsal bone joins the mid-foot. Implanting all or part of an artificial joint. How well does bunion surgery work? What are the risks of bunion surgery? You may still have problems with your toe after surgery, such as: Pain and swelling. A toe that is stiffer and less flexible. A bunion that comes back. A shorter big toe, if bone was removed during surgery. Numbness, tingling, or burning in your toe from damage to the nerves.

An outward or upward bend in your big toe. Other problems that can occur after bunion surgery include: An infection in the tissue or bone of the foot. To reach our George Dieter Drive podiatry office please call Driving directions are available here. Is it Finally Time for Bunion Surgery?

But now? In short, your bunion is getting harder to ignore. Is it finally time for surgery? But we need a little more information first. However … This does not mean your bunion needs surgery right now, or that you should just get it over with.

Common methods can include: Switching to more flexible shoes with a deeper shoe box Using pads and cushions to reduce pressure on the bump Using functional orthotics to reduce abnormal foot motion, which destabilizes the joint at the base of the bunion Contrary to popular belief, simply shaving existing calluses is not an effective treatment.

Your bunion is getting in the way of normal, everyday activities. Your bunion is preventing you from engaging in specific activities that are important to you due to pain or lack of mobility. What do we mean by that? Preparing for the holidays? Many women have a bunion — a deformity of the metatarsophalangeal MTP joint at the base of the big toe. A bunion develops when the first metatarsal bone of the foot turns outward and the big toe points inward toward the other toes , causing the joint to jut out see "Anatomy of a bunion".

The Latin name for the deformity is hallux valgus hallux means big toe, and valgus means turned away from the midline of the body. Most shoes don't accommodate the resulting protrusion and so put pressure on the misaligned joint.

Eventually, the bursa a fluid-filled sac that surrounds and cushions the joint becomes inflamed, and the entire joint becomes stiff and painful.

A bunion is most likely to develop when susceptible feet are repeatedly squeezed into narrow, pointed-toe footwear. The big toe pushes against the other toes, sometimes diving over or under them. As a result, the base of the big toe — the metatarsophalangeal MTP joint — juts or angles out from the foot. To judge how severe a bunion is, clinicians take an x-ray and measure angles between certain bones in the foot, in particular, the hallux valgus angle HVA — the angle between the first metatarsal and the big toe — and the angle formed by the first and second metatarsals, called the intermetatarsal angle IMA.

Shoes with narrow toes can trigger a bunion, but they're not the underlying cause. Bunions run in families, because foot type shape and structure is hereditary, and some types are more prone to bunions than others. Low arches, flat feet, and loose joints and tendons all increase the risk. The shape of the metatarsal head the top of the first metatarsal bone also makes a difference: if it's too round, the joint is less stable and more likely to deform when squeezed into shoes with narrow toes.

High heels can exacerbate the problem because they tip the body's weight forward, forcing the toes into the front of the shoe. This may help to explain why bunions are 10 times more common in women than in men.

People in occupations such as teaching and nursing, which involve a lot of standing and walking, are susceptible to bunions. So are ballet dancers, whose feet suffer severe repetitive stress. Women can develop bunions and other foot problems during pregnancy because hormonal changes loosen the ligaments and flatten the feet.

Bunions are also associated with arthritis, which damages the cartilage within the joint. You may be able to relieve pain and prevent bunions from progressing with conservative measures that take pressure off the MTP joint and improve foot mechanics. Bunions generally don't require surgery unless there's an underlying deformity that can't otherwise be corrected or the pain becomes debilitating despite conservative treatment.

The MTP joint helps us bear and distribute weight during a range of activities. A bunion at this critical junction of bones, tendons, and ligaments can seriously impair the foot's functioning. For one thing, a bunion on the big toe can damage the other toes. Under the pressure of the big toe, they may develop corns or become bent, forming hammertoes. The nails may become ingrown, and calluses may form on the bottom of the foot. If you constantly shift your weight off the painful big toe joint to other metatarsals, you may develop discomfort in the ball of the foot.

As the misshapen joint becomes more uncomfortable and harder to fit into shoes, you may have to curtail exercise and other activities. Even walking may become difficult.

Especially in older women, foot disorders are a major cause of disability and sedentary habits. Older women are more likely to have bunions as they get older, and the more severe their bunions are, the lower their quality of life is.

You should seek treatment if the pain and deformity interfere with daily routines and physical activity.