Bunions are a condition in which the big toe deviates towards the other toes, usually accompanied by inflammation or redness. This can be very painful for people who are active in sports or self-motivated to achieve specific physical goals. Bunions are typically caused by an incorrect gait when walking, which results in excessive pronation of the foot, causing the big toe to deviate to the inside of the foot. You can identify excessive pronation by a gap between your second and third toes, called a bunion gap. Bunions are also hereditary, passed down in the family. You should seek treatment for bunions in New York if you have the condition.
Causes of Bunions
The most common cause of bunions is an inherited structural condition that causes changes in foot shape, making the big toe deviate towards the second toe.
High heels also cause bunions to form by restricting the natural movement of your feet. High heels shorten the Achilles tendon and its flexibility, which pulls on the big toe and causes it to bend towards the other toes. It’s vital to avoid them when trying to correct foot problems, such as bunions or hammertoes.
Change in footwear is another common reason for bunion formation. Most often, people who have hammertoes also have bunions. If you’re wearing shoes that are too tight in the toe box, especially shoes with pointed toes or shoes that force your big toe to stay straight (never bend), it will cause your other toes to crowd toward the big toe and make it seem like you have an extra knuckle on the big toe.
Uncomfortable or ill-fitting shoes can be a factor in creating bunions and hammertoes, but they aren’t the only factors.
How to Treat Bunions
If you have a bunion, you should prevent it from worsening. Though bunion surgeries are prevalent, they can be extremely painful and require treating the foot for weeks or months before walking again.
The most common form of treatment is wearing properly fitted footwear. Shoe inserts, bunion pads, insoles, and toe spacers are some of the many products available for this purpose. You can also use braces or taping methods to correct your gait not to irritate the bunion any further.
Other common treatments include custom orthotics, anti-inflammatory medications, steroid injections, physical therapy, or bunion surgery.
One common type of bunion surgery is an osteotomy, which corrects the deformity by cutting the bone of the first metatarsal head and realigning it. The bone is then held in place with either a pin or wire until it heals, often accompanied by a cast or splint to immobilize the foot during recovery.
Other bunion surgeries are designed to cut and reposition the tendon, remove bone spurs or realign the toe.
Bunion surgery is considered a highly successful procedure performed by an experienced foot & ankle surgeon.
In summary, bunions are a condition in which the big toe deviates towards the other toes. Most cases of bunions run in the family, but you can also develop the condition due to wearing ill-fitting shoes and changing footwear. You can treat the condition using properly fitted footwear. If it does not work, you may need surgery.
