Bunions
Our doctors are experts in the repair of all bunion deformities with over 21 years of hospital and private practice experience. The procedure is performed at the hospital or surgery center under intravenous sedation and local anesthesia. The procedure takes approximately 40-50 minutes to perform. Post operatively, you will be discharged to home 1-2 hours after the procedure. The doctor will prescribe an antibiotic, anti-inflammatory, and pain medication to be taken post operatively to keep you comfortable. Most patients have little discomfort after the procedure which is sufficiently controlled by the prescribed medications. We have performed thousands of these procedures. Our doctors are often asked to lecture and teach his techniques to colleagues, residents, and students. Using the most advanced techniques and years of experience, we provide our patients with a superior functional and cosmetic result. Unlike most foot surgeons, we are able to perform the procedure through a medial (side) approach which hides the scar much better than a dorsal (top) approach. We are also well trained and experienced with revisional bunion surgery from previous failed / recurred procedures. Given our experience, we are often asked by colleagues to take over the more difficult cases. There are several types of bunion procedures which are selected based on the degree of your condition. The doctors will explain the procedure selection, risks, potential complications, and the post operative course in detail during your evaluation and pre operative consultation.
NEW BUNION PROCEDURE MARKETING: There are various types of bunion surgeries. Our doctors will discuss the appropriate procedure for you and your condition. There is aggressive marketing being advertised to the public lately about a one size fits all bunion procedures. There are many terms being thrown around like 2D, 3D and 4D and MIS (minimally invasive surgery) bunion corrections. Every patient is unique. There is not one procedure that is best for everyone. The selection of a bunion (hallux valgus) repair procedure is based on many parameters including, but not limited to: severity of the bunion, age of the patient, pre op pain level, existing arthritis in big toe joint, goals of the procedure, time out of work, ability to tolerate required post op course of a procedure. (i.e post op weightbearing), history of blood clots, history of smoking, previous bunion surgery, other foot deformities, etc. Only an expert in foot surgery can give you all the options including risks and potential complications and advise on the procedure selection not a TV or website add.
Any so called "new bunion procedures" are generally older aggressive, but successful, procedures (i.e. Lapidus - invented 1934 by Paul W. Lapidus)) that have gained more recent popularity because of newer cut guides and plate systems invented by the company doing the marketing. The Lapidus and Modified Lapidus procedures have been around for decades. These are still aggressive procedures that required removal of a joint (1st TM) and fusion of that joint with plates and screws no matter what is advertised. They are generally reserved for very large deformities. They require immobilization for at least 4 weeks then protected weight bearing in a boot for another 4 weeks or until the fusion heals. There can be severe problems if that joint does not fuse which more surgery but now with a bone graft and more cast immobilization.
Recurrences: Marketing of bunion surgery companies to sell their modified procedures and expensive hardware have suggested recurrences of 70% +. This statement is very misleading. There are quoting a studied that showed a xrays or radiographic recurrence with traditional less aggressive procedures. What they are not telling you is that the patient satisfaction of those procedures is in the 90%+ range.
Please be careful of the marketing strategies. Talk to our doctors. We do many different types of bunion procedures as stated above. The selection is based on you and your needs.
Hammer Toes
Our surgeons have performed thousands of hammer toes repairs. They use a very small incision to repair these deformities. If applicable, he tries to hide the scar in the joint crease of the skin. This allows the patient to have a very small near non visible scar. We generally will use a number of different fixation devices (screw, pin, absorbable pins, etc) based on the defomity, patient anatomy and bone quality. Our Doctors are well trained and experienced with plantar plate tears as well. This is a more complex form of a hammer toe and often requires a very technical repair that most foot surgeons are not trained to perform.
