Foot & Ankle Diseases
A variety of foot deformities can be the cause of pain due to the impaired load distribution on the sole. If the pain is severe enough to influence the daily life adversely, weight loss and appropriate shoes are primarily recommended in order to reduce the load born on the feet. However, the underlying cause of the pain is surgically eliminated and complaints are relieved in patients, who cannot benefit from such non-surgical modalities.
HALLUX VALGUS (Bunion Surgery)
The problems that involve the big toe are the most common deformity of feet that require a surgical approach. Hallux valgus or bunion – a painful bone protrusion at the medial side of the great toe – is common especially in women who wear narrow shoes and high heels. The success of hallux valgus surgery is a function of relieving the pain in the postoperative period and preventing recurrence of deformity over time. When hallux valgus is surgically treated, two to three mini operations are concomitantly carried out to correct the deformity. Correct preoperative radiological analysis and selection of correct mini operations are the keys to the successful outcomes in hallux valgus surgeries.
If the deformity affects the anterior foot, other toes also play an important role. Although the problems that involve small toes are usually secondary to improper shoe selection, a rheumatic disorder of the joint is the underlying cause in some patients.
Since anesthesia is administered in operations carried out to correct foot deformities, the pain can comfortably be controlled. Patients may start wearing shoes 3 to 4 weeks after the surgery. However, patients are postoperatively recommended to select appropriate shoes.
Ankle Diseases
Straining is the most common trauma that the ankle joint exposes to in our body. As a result of strain, ligaments of joints are almost always injured at varying levels, while injury of the articular cartilage is a common condition that is faced in severe strains. First, simple orthopedic methods are instituted to manage this condition, but most cases can recover based on the regeneration mechanisms of the body. Ankle arthroscopy, a minimally invasive surgery, provides access to the diseased area through two or three small holes in patients, whom non-surgical treatment modalities do not help. When the surgery is carried out with this method, ankle problems may recover far faster relative to the open surgery.
However, arthroscopic surgery is insufficient in the group of patients with cartilage problem that have already progressed to osteoarthritis – deposition of calcium in the joint. Ankle prosthesis surgery eliminates the severe pain that is the principal complaint of such patients, and the worn cartilaginous surface of the ankle joint is replaced with an artificial joint to relieve or eliminate the pain. After ankle prosthesis surgery, patients with properly functioning joints have significant improvement in the gait pattern in their daily activities.
Learn more about arthroscopic surgery and other treatment alternatives for foot and ankle diseases.
