Your feet are the primary source of support that helps you maintain proper posture and balance, especially when you’re walking. The bones in your feet account for one-fourth of all the bones in your body. Because of this, any injury or problem with them may seriously affect your physical activities.
It’s critical to have any foot or ankle injury or damage evaluated by a medically certified orthopedic. They can quickly diagnose and recommend treatment options to restore your feet’s proper function. Your feet’s or ankle’s condition may require restorative therapy, corrective cosmetic foot surgery, or just some home-care remedies.
Some Known Foot Disorders That Need Corrective Surgery
- Flat feet
- Bunion
- Plantar fasciitis
- Hammertoe or mallet toe
- Morton’s neuroma
- Heel spur
- Claw toe
- Metatarsalgia or stone bruise
- Foot and ankle arthritis
- Achilles tendon disorder
- Tibialis posterior disorder
There’s a long list of foot disorders that require corrective surgery. These painful disorders usually start with mild discomforts that most patients ignore. Some use home remedies to relieve what’s thought to be a minor foot problem. Over time, however, the pain becomes unmanageable. Orthopedic doctors who specialize in podiatry can help treat your foot pain.
How Mobility Is Helped By Corrective Foot Surgery
1. Repairs Ligaments Or Tendons
Corrective foot surgery, like flatfoot correction or reconstruction, repairs foot ligaments, and tendons to remove foot discomforts. This surgical repair of foot and ankle ligaments relieves chronic pain by restoring and maintaining the foot’s arch.
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Arthroscopy and foot ligament reconstruction are usual surgery procedures that repair and restore foot ligaments and tendons. These are also performed on patients who suffer from multiple sprains due to chronic ankle instability.
Correcting plantar fasciitis and heel spurs is also done through surgery. The procedure releases tight ligaments in plantar fasciitis and removes heel bone spurs to get rid of your disabling pain.
Living a healthy lifestyle will be a challenge if you suffer from foot disorders. Discussing your symptoms with your doctor will help address them quickly. And, if correctly managed, you’ll be free of discomforts and have greater mobility.
2. Reconstructs Bone Structure
Surgeries to help relieve chronic pain due to foot or ankle conditions include osteotomy. It’s a type of foot surgery where sections of the foot’s bones are removed. It reshapes and reconstructs foot bone structure to relieve discomfort and pressure caused by a deformity or injury.
Bunions, mallet toes, fractures, and flat feet are some conditions that may call for this operation. It’s also used in cosmetic reconstruction, or the Cinderella procedure, to correct the foot’s structure and be able to wear classy pointed shoes.
Foot fusion surgery also reconstructs the foot’s bone structure. It’s a procedure to merge or fuse together ruptured or disintegrated bones. It may be due to fractures that didn’t recover or due to some degenerative diseases.
These corrective procedures restore physical activity, normal foot function, and overall body mobility.
3. Realigns And Stabilizes Foot And Ankle
Another corrective surgery to realign the foot or ankle is the open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF) procedure. It’s performed to reposition dislocated bones in the foot or the ankle due to trauma, fracture, or bone injury. It’s usually an emergency procedure after a car accident or emergency case injuries. It’s done under heavy sedation or general anesthesia.
The term ‘open reduction’ refers to a foot surgery where a surgeon creates an incision to operate and realign the bone, while ‘internal fixation’ is the procedure that uses plates, rods, metal pins, or screws to ‘fix’ severely broken or fractured bones.
These surgeries restore foot and ankle function. Orthopedic doctors usually recommend physical therapy once the bones begin to heal. It’s to help patients recover and return to their daily routines.
4. Eliminates Foot And Ankle Pain
Some foot disorders are asymptomatic, with minimal discomforts. However, other illnesses, like arthritis, affecting foot joints can cause excruciating pain. It decreases your ability to do your daily tasks and even stops you from working.
Arthroplasty helps correct these joint problems caused by arthritis and other diseases. It restores joint function and mobility by resurfacing joint bones. The operation involves inserting an artificial joint into the foot to replace damaged or deteriorated joints.
Another procedure to eliminate foot or ankle pain is arthrodesis or joint fusion surgery. It’s performed to fuse two or more bones in a joint. It removes the diseased cartilage in the foot joint. The bone ends are cut off, and the two ends are fused together using metal implants in internal fixation.
Another type of arthrodesis is triple fusion surgery. It’s used to treat and relieve painful foot bone deformities. The surgery involves fusing the three ankle joints to allow foot sideways movement.
After a period of recovery and a series of physical therapy sessions, you’ll be able to return to your regular activities. Your doctor and therapist will teach you how to properly use your corrected foot. You’ll now have better mobility with your corrected foot or ankle, and will be able to return to your usual physical activities.
To Sum It Up
Keeping your feet healthy and getting frequent checkups to avoid foot disorders is vital. But, some activities and unforeseen circumstances may result in foot deformities. It may have already caused you to stop your usual activities at home or office, and home pain management may not work for the foot discomforts you’re experiencing.
Visiting your podiatrist or orthopedic doctor may give you some treatment suggestions depending on your foot’s condition. Corrective foot surgery may just be the solution to relieve your long-time suffering. It’ll be up to your doctor to explain in greater detail how a particular corrective foot surgery can help you reclaim and increase the mobility you formerly had.
