Foot / Ankle

Osteoarthritis of the MTP joint is also called arthritis of the big toe which causes pain and stiffness to the affected joint. The causes may be previous joint trauma, increased body weight, age, family history and poor ankle-foot alignment such as a flat foot. The main symptom is pain in the joint and often stiffness or deviation of the joint.

Wearing appropriate footwear or appropriately supportive insoles can improve symptoms. In addition, regular exercises to maintain flexibility to the ankle and foot is essential. Painkillers and steroid injections are given when symptoms are severe. Finally, when conservative treatment is not helpful and pain and stiffness are severe surgical management is indicated where MTP joint debridement, fusion or MTP joint replacement surgery can be performed.

Hallux valgus is the condition where the big toe is deviating pushing against the neighboring toe, forcing the joint of the big toe to swell and to become painful. This common deformity can be caused by wearing shoes that are excessively tight or can develop as a result of a genetic structural defect or a medical condition, such as arthritis. The result very often is a bony bump formation, a bunion, at the base of the big toe where. A bunion tend to slowly worsen over time, and if it becomes too severe, can hamper the ability to walk, increase the risk of developing arthritis or can be inflamed and cause bursitis.

The treatment depends on the symptoms and degree of deformation. When deformity is mild, wearing appropriate footwear or splints may be temporarily beneficial. Surgery is the only way to treat bunions, if they are symptomatic.

Both of them involve abnormal positions of the joints of the toes. They occur throughout life, although are most often seen in the seventh and eighth decades. Women are affected four to five times more often than men.

Conservative treatment includes wearing protective padding on or splints. When the toe deformity is painful or permanent, surgical repair is the only way to relieve pain and correct the problem. Surgery may include soft-tissue re balancing and sometimes fusions of the PIP joint.                                                                

Morton’s neuroma is a condition that affects one of the nerves that run between the long bones (metatarsals) in the foot. Sometimes is correlated with narrow spaces between bones. This problem occur at any age, but most often affects middle-aged women and runners possibly because of the increased pressure on the toes. When the nerve is irritated can cause pain, burning sensation, numbness and tingling between two of the toes of the foot.

Conservative treatment includes changing footwear, soft pad application, painkillers and steroid injections. Surgery for Morton’s neuroma is usually only recommended if there is severe pain or if the above treatments haven’t worked.