Bunion: A bunion is a painful bony bump that forms on the inside of the foot at the big toe joint. The medical name is hallux valgus. The foot bunion develops slowly. Pressure on the big toe joint causes the big toe to lean toward the second toe, forcing the joint of your big toe to get bigger and stick out. The skin covering the bunion sway be red and sore. Bunions develop slowly. This foot bunion deformity will gradually increase and may make it painful to wear shoes or walk.
Wearing tight, narrow shoes might cause bunions or make them worse. Proposed factors include wearing overly tight shoes, family history, and rheumatoid arthritis.
Anyone can get a bunion, but they are more common in women. Many women wear tight, narrow shoes that squeeze the toes together—which makes it more likely for a foot bunion to develop. The usual age of onset is between 20 and 50 years old. Smaller foot bunions known as bunionettes or tailor’s bunion can develop on the joint of your little toe.
In most cases, bunion pain is relieved by wearing wider shoes with bunion pads, rest, icing, steroid injections, and/or surgery.
Anatomy Big Toe
The big toe is one of five digits located on the front of the foot. It is known as the hallux. The big toe is made up of two joints. The largest long bone of the foot (metatarsal) meets the first bone of the toe (phalanx) to make the metatarsophalangeal joint (MTP).
Bunions develop at the MTP joint, the long metatarsal bone shifts toward the inside of the foot, and the phalanx bones of the big toe angle toward the second toe. The MTP joint gets enlarged and is often inflamed, and the bump on the inside of the foot typically looks red and swollen like a turnip.
What Causes Bunion
The exact what cause bunion is unclear, it is believed that bunions are caused by multiple factors including-
Wearing overly tight shoes, abnormal anatomy at first MTP joint, rheumatoid arthritis and genetic factors. Overpronation is the usual cause of bunion in younger. Overpronation can lead to weakness of the metatarsal-phalangeal joint and muscle imbalance, resulting in the deformity. Rheumatoid arthritis often causes harsh bunions to develop along with other toe deformities.
Other few common reasons for bunion deformities include sprains, fractures, neuromuscular disorders, nerve injuries, and limb-length discrepancies, where the longer leg develops the bunion. The longer limb will tend to cause the foot to overpronate.
Bunion Symptoms
The manifestations of bunions include pain when walking, joint redness and pain, irritated skin around the bunion, and the possible shift of the big toe toward the other toes.
Other bunion symptoms include:
- A bulging bump on the outside of the base of your big toe.
- Swelling, redness or soreness around your big toe joint that’s made worse by pressure from wearing shoes.
- Corn on foot — these often develop where the first and second toes overlap.
- Changes to the shape of your foot, making it difficult to find shoes that fit.
- Persistent or intermittent pain.
- Restricted movement of your big toe if arthritis affects the toe.
These symptoms can sometimes get worse if the bunion is left untreated.
Bunion Diagnosis
Your doctor can identify a bunion diagnosis by symptoms and analyzed by plain projection radiography your foot. The hallux valgus angle (HVA) is the angle within the longitudinal axes of the proximal phalanx and the first metatarsal bone of the big toe. It is regarded as abnormal if greater than 15–18°.The following HVA angles can be employed to grade the severity-
Mild Bunion: 15–20°
Moderate Bunion: 21–39°
Severe Bunion: ≥ 40°
Bunion Treatment
Nonsurgical bunion treatments
A bunion needs to be treated if it’s causing significant pain and discomfort. Nonsurgical treatments that may relieve the bunion pain and pressure of a bunion include-
Bunion pads
Use over-the-counter, nonmedicated bunion pads. Bunion pads may be made of either gel or fleece, are available over the counter from pharmacies. Also, your doctor can help you tape(Kinesio tape) your foot in a normal position. This can reduce stress on the bunion and alleviate your bunion pain.
Shoes
Wear wide shoes with a low heel and soft sole that provide plenty of space for your toes. Make sure the ball of your foot fits well into the widest part (ball pocket) of the shoe. Shoes made from soft leather are ideal because they’ll relieve any pressure on the bunion.
Orthotics and Other Devices
To take pressure off your bunion, your doctor may recommend Padded shoe inserts can help distribute pressure evenly when you move your feet, reducing your symptoms and preventing your bunion pain from getting worse. Toe spacers can be placed between your toes. In some cases, a bunion splint or bunion brace is worn at night that places your big toe in a straighter position may help relieve pain.
Best bunion splints will help pull your big toe into proper alignment. Bunion corrector helps resolve some of the stiffness and pain that develop in your foot joints as a result of the poor positioning of the big toe.
The vast majority of bunion splints provide padding or cushion that can be positioned over the bunion. This checks the raised surface of the bunion from brushing against your shoe, preventing calluses.
Some bunion splints known as bunion night splint are designed to be worn while you sleep, while others for the day. Certain best bunion brace can fit under socks and can be worn during sporting activities and exercise.
Bunion splints can also very rigid and firm, while others best bunion corrector are soft and bendable. Some bunion brace is designed to push your big toe back into the right position, while others are designed to pull your toe.
Most importantly, you need a bunion splint that is comfortable, as you wearing it a lot.
Your foot posture muscles are important to correct the biomechanics that making your bunion. Your physiotherapist will assess your foot posture muscles and prescribe the best bunion exercises for you specific to your needs.
- Using your fingers to lightly pull your big toe over into decent alignment can be helpful as well. Keep your toe in position for 10 seconds and repeat three to four seasons.
- Resistance exercises for your big toe. Wrap a belt around your big toe and use it to pull your big toe moving you while simultaneously pushing forward, against the belt, with your big toe.
- Place a golf ball on the floor below your foot, and roll it under your foot for two minutes. This bunion exercises help relieve foot strain and cramping.
Ice
Applying ice several times a day for 20 minutes at a time can assist reduce swelling. Icing your bunion if it becomes inflamed can help relieve soreness and inflammation. Do not apply ice directly on your skin.
Medications
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications such as ibuprofen and naproxen can help can help you with a bunion pain relief. Other medications can be guided to help pain and swelling in patients whose bunions are caused by arthritis. Cortisone injections also might benefit from bunion pain relief.
Bunions treatment without surgery only relief pain & prevent further damage. The only way to actually cure a bunion is to get surgery.B union splints or bunion corrector and other natural bunion treatments can prevent further damage, alleviate pain and joint issues, but will not be able to permanently correct your foot.
Bunion surgery
Bunionectomy
Bunionectomy is the most commonly used and proven type of bunion surgery. Although there are many different types of osteotomy, in the case of Bunionectomy involve –
Your surgeon will be eliminating the abnormal bony enlargement and be realigning the first metatarsal bone corresponding to the adjacent metatarsal bone, addressing arthritic changes linked with the great toe joint and connecting two parallel long bones side by side by syndesmosis procedure.
A Bunion surgery procedure called distal soft tissue realignment may be combined with an osteotomy. This help corrects the deformity and improves the stability and appearance of the foot.
Arthrodesis
Arthrodesis comprises fusing together two bones in your big toe joint. Arthrodesis is usually only advised for people with severe deformities of the big toe joint, which involves fusing together two bones in your big toe joint. After arthrodesis, the big toe movement will be severely limited and you won’t be able to wear high heels.
After bunion surgery, your foot and ankle may be swollen for three months or longer. It’s likely that you’ll be unable to wear normal shoes for at least six months after surgery.
You may hold a cast or bandage before you can start wearing normal footwear. This will keep the bones and soft tissues in position while they heal. Specific exercises will help restore your foot’s strength and range of motion after bunion surgery. Your physical therapist may prescribe exercises using a surgical band to strengthen your ankle to restore motion in your toes.
The majority of bunion surgery patients experience a reduction of foot pain, along with an improvement in the alignment of their big toe.
The main cause of bunion deformity is a tight-fitting shoe, your doctor’s recommendations for proper shoe fit.