A painful foot deformity - a protruding bunion on the big toe - is a problem that is familiar to many women.
Why does this “bump” appear, is it possible to slow down its development, and how to remove the “ugly” growth that prevents you from wearing elegant shoes and spoils your gait? Modern medicine knows the answers to these questions.
A bunion on the big toe is not only a cosmetic problem. Foot deformation not only disfigures the leg, but also worsens health due to constant pain and inflammation. Choosing comfortable, but at the same time elegant, shoes turns into an impossible task.
“Bumps” on the legs: women’s retribution for the desire for beauty
What in everyday life we call a bunion on the big toe, in scientific language sounds like a hallux valgus deformity of the toe. There is no “bump” on the leg. It just seems that way. In fact, this is a deviation of the first metatarsal bone of the foot to the inside with a simultaneous inclination of the big toe to the outside.
If the problem is not addressed immediately, the situation will only get worse over time. Gradually the bone will stick out more and more. This not only disfigures the leg, but also causes severe pain when walking. And besides, it creates incredible difficulties when choosing shoes.
It happens that a bunion on the big toe is mistaken for arthrosis, gout or salt deposits. A traumatologist-orthopedist at the Komarova Clinic will help make a diagnosis based on a visual examination and x-ray of the feet, as well as a blood test.
Lump on the thumb bone
The reasons for the appearance of a bone may be the following:
- Wrong shoes;
- Shoe heels that are too high;
- Hereditary occurrence;
- Weak ligaments.
If you have already had a lump on your bunion and you start wearing orthopedic shoes, then you may experience sharp pain in the big toe joint.
What to do if your feet hurt?
Foot pain can indicate various diseases.
Sensation of Valgus damage - with this disease, as a rule, the joints in the knees bend in different directions, as a result of which the feet diverge and a bump appears. In other words, the thumb becomes dislocated and inflammation occurs.
Since the vital activity of the thumb is supported by synovial fluid, due to injury, it gets into the usual local fluid with low availability, which causes inflammation and bone pain.
joint pain
The human body is supported by uric acid, which reverses the process of crystal formation in different areas within the body. In the case of this disease, the following symptoms may be observed:
- Pain in bones and ligaments;
- Joint tumor;
- Formation of tophi.
How to get rid of pain in a lump-shaped formation?
Inflammation of the joints can lead to problems in the body as a whole. A characteristic feature was tandem severe headache. Problems begin with choosing shoes, since not all fit, due to the fact that the lump is in the way. Often, to get rid of the growth it is necessary to resort to surgery. Then strictly adhere to the rules - wear only orthopedic shoes. For rehabilitation, it is often recommended to engage in physical therapy.
In cases of severe pain, physical devices are used to treat inflammation of the joints. As a rule, in order to get rid of inflammation, electrophoresis, massage, and medicinal baths are used, which must be done for several days without a break for ten minutes.
The recipe is as follows: Heat three liters of water, add one tablespoon of soda and ten drops of iodine to it.
How to apply compresses correctly?
In folk medicine, the following compress recipes are used:
- Grind three garlic and tori onion cloves, mix and apply to the inflamed area, you need to keep it for several hours until it starts to burn.
- Bee waste, namely propolis, must be softened and applied to the growth for three to four hours a day, for five days.
Depending on the degree of neglect of the lump formation, massage treatment may be prescribed. With this method, vegetable oils are used in a ratio of three drops of oil per 50 milliliters of water. Oils can be different: lavender, lemon, pine, cypress.
When using these oils, you can quickly get rid of pain; if you do not have any of the listed oils, add 20 drops of any essential oil.
Medicines and methods of treatment for inflammation of the lump
For drug treatment, the use of Fastum gel or ibuprofen ointment is prescribed. Hydrocortisone is recommended for injections; depending on the degree of the disease, some medications are administered intravenously.
For pain, it is necessary to use baths with steamed chamomile, sage, and calendula flowers.
A compress of yarrow and burdock root also helps. Brew two tablespoons of dry mixture for half a liter of water. After that, you need to leave the solution to steam for half an hour, then apply a bandage soaked in the solution to the bump.
All of the above procedures are very helpful in combating pain caused by a growth on the thumb joint.
But self-medication is not recommended; in case of inflammation, it is best to first contact a specialist to determine the severity of the disease. Author: K.M.N., Academician of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences M.A. Bobyr
Why does a “bone” appear on the legs?
The most annoying thing is that women are primarily susceptible to this disease. According to statistics, women are 20 times more likely to experience thumb deformity than men. But we love to show off in elegant shoes with thin heels. According to doctors, women have congenital weakness of the musculo-ligamentous system. We should take care of our legs. And we, on the contrary, “climb” higher, onto stiletto heels, so the foot cannot withstand the load, flattens and becomes deformed.
The hereditary factor also plays a role: if your mother and grandmother had similar problems, then you are definitely at risk. Don't think that bumps on your feet are an age-related problem. Quite often, deformity of the big toe appears in young girls aged 12-15 years. In this case, after 25 years, when the body stops growing, the bone is surgically corrected.
Other reasons that provoke the formation of a bunion on the big toe include excessive loads: excess weight, long walking, previous diseases of the cartilage tissue of the joint, as well as flat feet.
How is the “bunion at the base of the big toe” formed?
So, what happens to the leg if additional stress is placed on it? A healthy foot has two arches: transverse and longitudinal. The arches act as natural shock absorbers, softening shaking when walking. If the load on the foot is distributed unevenly, then the muscles and ligaments gradually weaken, the arches sag and flatten. This is also reflected in the metatarsal bones of the foot, which in a normal anatomical structure should be parallel to each other.
If the foot is already flattened, has become wider, and we all still walk in tight narrow shoes, then the following happens. The first metatarsal bone gradually deviates from its correct position. Displacement of the finger and this bone leads to the formation of the so-called valgus angle. The head of the metatarsal bone is its apex, which thickens over time and transforms into that very bone that cannot be hidden.
Stages of hallux valgus deformity of the big toe
Traumatologists and orthopedists at the Komarova Clinic identify several stages of deformation:
- First stage: displacement no more than 20 degrees. There are no unpleasant sensations, only aesthetic inconvenience.
- Second stage: displacement of 20-30 degrees. When walking for a long time, pain appears.
- Third stage: displacement of 30-50 degrees. The bunion prevents you from walking, it hurts, and it becomes difficult to find comfortable shoes.
- Stage four: displacement greater than 50 degrees. Constant pain and ongoing inflammation bring suffering even at rest. The deformity begins to affect other phalanges of the fingers.
Treatment of a bunion on the big toe in Vladivostok
Baths won't help! No matter what adherents of traditional medicine write on the Internet, lotions, baths, compresses and iodine nets will not get rid of a bunion on the foot. All these measures can only temporarily alleviate suffering by relieving pain and heaviness in the legs. If the deformity is minor, it can be corrected using various orthopedic means.
For example, special orthopedic insoles are very effective - which can be individually made for each patient by a traumatologist-orthopedist at the Komarov Clinic.
At the initial stage of the disease, wearing a night abduction bandage, which fixes the big toe in the correct position, can alleviate the situation. The design does not allow you to walk with it, but it does not interfere with sleep. It turns out to be a kind of therapeutic sleep.
For daily wear, there are special corrective pads that protect the bones from pressure from shoes and form the correct position of the big toe, as well as various interdigital partitions.
Nodes in the veins of the legs: treatment and its features
Treatment of nodes in the veins of the legs begins only after the patient has undergone a series of laboratory and instrumental examinations, the key of which is ultrasound duplex scanning of the vessels of the lower extremities.
Based on the results obtained, the phlebologist can judge the need for minimally invasive surgical intervention and the degree of its safety for the patient. Vein nodules in the leg can be eliminated under local anesthesia in several ways.
- Laser coagulation of a vessel, which involves introducing a special device into the cavity of a blood vessel and “welding” its walls with thermal radiation. Due to this, it stops filling with blood and is completely excluded from the bloodstream.
- Miniphlebectomy, the essence of which is the complete removal of the affected superficial vessels by removing them from the thickness of the tissue through small punctures.
Orthopedic insoles Sursil Orto in Vladivostok
At any stage of development of the disease, it is imperative to wear orthopedic insoles.
They will not only help to correctly distribute the load on the foot, relieving the problem area, but will also relieve tension from the joints of the legs and spine. The key to successful treatment of a bunion in its initial stage of development is an insole made individually for your foot, taking into account the characteristics of the foot, arch and size. Modern insoles are very thin (2-3 millimeters), easily fit into any shoes, that is, you can wear them with your regular shoes. And they are done very quickly, 20-30 minutes - and the insoles are ready.
And, of course, the traumatologist-orthopedist of the Clinic on Komarova will select an individual set of therapeutic procedures: massage, physiotherapy, physical therapy. All these methods will help stop the development of the disease and prevent further deformation of the foot.
Symptoms and diagnosis
Most often, patients independently discover various deformities, after which they turn to an orthopedic traumatologist.
Depending on the stage, the patient experiences:
- formations in the form of cones, corns, calluses in the joint area;
- protrusion of the bone from the inner edge of the foot;
- swelling in the foot;
- redness of the skin, swelling on the foot;
- discomfort when walking;
- pain when walking and at rest (at different stages).
Regardless of the location of the pain or the detection of a swelling or lump, you should not delay your visit to the doctor. In the early stages, it is possible to correct the situation with minimal intervention. Therefore, I recommend seeking help as soon as you notice even minor changes in the structure of your feet. If there are visible changes (corns, calluses, growths), then there is already deformation and dysfunction in the foot.
Before prescribing treatment, a diagnosis is carried out. Therefore, it is necessary to carefully determine the location of the disease, its nature and stage.
Diagnosis is carried out by the method of initial examination, collection of anamnesis (symptoms and complaints), ultrasound examination, radiography (necessary to determine the position of the deformity and exclude circulatory disorders).
Methods of surgical correction of thumb deformity in Vladivostok
However, today the most effective treatment for bunions on the leg is surgical correction.
There are many surgical techniques to return the finger to its normal position. “Reconstruction” of a hallux valgus in our clinic is carried out using the most modern methods. These techniques allow patients to return to their normal lives as quickly as possible. For the first time after surgery, it is necessary to wear special shoes that do not place stress on the forefoot. Then you can switch to orthopedic shoes, or move with the help of crutches or a stick. It is important to understand that the operation eliminates only a cosmetic defect (that is, the “bump” itself), but does not restore the transverse arch of the foot. To prevent the bunion from appearing again, you will have to wear only the right shoes with arch support and custom orthopedic insoles for the rest of your life.
Varicose veins on the legs - symptoms and treatment
Taking into account modern treatment methods, the prognosis for varicose veins is favorable. Even in the most seemingly advanced cases, the elimination of varicose veins leads to a rapid improvement in the patient’s condition [8] [11].
However, when planning treatment, it is very important to assess its risks, since any intervention still carries potential adverse events. The direct responsibility of the doctor is to reduce their likelihood as much as possible. Before any manipulation, it is necessary to discuss with the patient all points regarding the intervention and obtain his signature on informed consent.
All adverse events can be divided into risks associated with surgery, including anesthesia, and risks on the part of the patient.
The risks of the operation may be small, for example, inflammation (phlebitis) in “welded” or sclerotic veins, accompanied by compaction in their projection and moderate pain. Areas of skin with reduced sensitivity and hyperpigmentation of the skin may appear. All these phenomena are temporary and, as a rule, pass quickly enough without any consequences [1].
Major complications include deep vein thrombosis, allergic and toxic reactions to anesthetic drugs. They are extremely rare, but for an individual patient who experiences such a complication, the case is 100 percent, even with statistics of 1 case per 10,000 operations.
Prevention of venous thrombosis is primarily based on calculating its risk using the so-called scoring system using the Caprini table. It contains various risk factors that have their own gradation. Taking into account each factor and obtaining a total score determines the degree of risk and, accordingly, its prevention. The main means of preventing venous thromboembolic complications are as follows:
- minimizing the trauma of the operation;
- early activation of the patient;
- compression jersey;
- pharmacological prevention, i.e., prescription of anticoagulants according to indications - blood thinning drugs (low molecular weight heparins or direct oral anticoagulants) [10].
Allergic and toxic reactions to the drug are, unfortunately, very difficult to predict. Testing for allergies to certain drugs does not prevent its occurrence and is not used in world practice. Therefore, it is extremely important to be prepared for the occurrence of these complications in any patient and to be able to provide immediate assistance. For this purpose, special equipment (first aid kits) with all necessary medications are always available in the operating room.
Risks from patients are usually associated with concomitant pathologies, for example, hypertension, coronary heart disease, epilepsy, etc. To prevent attacks of such diseases, a thorough medical history is taken and consultations with specialists are scheduled, who “give the go-ahead” for the operation.
As for the prevention of varicose veins, it simply does not exist, since the main cause of the pathology is still not clear, which could be influenced and thus prevent the occurrence of the disease. This is also associated with fairly frequent relapses of varicose veins after any type of intervention. However, given all the advantages of minimally invasive treatment, this is not a significant problem. Keeping your legs in order is quite simple, the main thing is to contact a phlebologist in time[3][5][6][10].
Preventing the appearance of a bunion on the big toe
However, no matter what innovative technologies and methods are, the best treatment is prevention. In this case, the right shoes, wide in diameter, with a round toe, made of soft materials and with a heel no higher than 4 cm. If you cannot refuse stilettos, then be sure to insert a special insole for high heels with a transverse corrector to support the foot.
By the way, running or jumping sports can also provoke the formation of a bunion on the big toe, since the front arch of the foot is overloaded during training. The solution to the problem is to wear special sports shoes for a specific type of physical activity.
And one more tip - there is nothing better for preventing “bumps” on your feet than walking barefoot on sand or small pebbles. This massage perfectly strengthens the ligaments of the foot and helps to avoid the development of flat feet and other joint diseases.
You can make an appointment with the clinic’s traumatologists-orthopedists for a consultation on the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of foot deformities by calling the outpatient department or 240 27 27.