Metatarsalgia is a common condition, which usually affects the bottom of your foot’s ball. Occasionally, you will notice a few other symptoms at the upper part of your forefoot nearby the area, where toes joining your feet. However, this takes place only after you experience symptoms related to bottom part of the foot’s ball.[1]
Is There A Surgery For Metatarsalgia?
Doctors recommend for the surgical treatment in patients whenever conservative treatment fails to manage the symptoms or when metatarsalgia has association with shortening/reducing of the first metatarsal.
Details on Surgery Procedure
Metatarsalgia surgery involves different procedures, which include metatarsal osteotomy, bunion surgery or repositioning of bones. Furthermore, osteotomy surgery consists of double or single V-shaped osteotomy of the middle part of your metatarsal bones performed within the dorso-plantar type of plane that belongs to proximal metaphysic.
Aim of the Surgery. Osteotomy surgical procedure for metatarsalgia helps in proper alignment of metatarsal heads and extra bones shortening in case of requirement. This type of surgical procedure is stable and simple with the union of rapid bones.
Outpatient Basis Surgery. Doctors perform metatarsalgia surgery as per outpatient basis. Depending on the exact procedure, you may or may not allow running or walking on your foot post surgery.
Recovery and Success Rate. Recovery after your surgery to cure metatarsalgia requires minimum 3 months to 6 months. The success rate of the procedure is about 75 percent, while about 20% of the individuals experience improvement with a few limitations in their activities. On the other side, 5% of them neither have any worse or better condition.
Risks Involved in the Surgery. Even though surgery may help in curing your problem, it involves few risks, which include-
- Callus or recurrent pain
- Infection
- Transfer of callus or pain to any adjacent metatarsal
- Broken pins or hardware recurrent deformity of the hammertoe
- Non-healing or delay in healing of the bone, entrapment or nerve injury
- Delay in the healing of the incision
- Prolonged recovery post-surgery
- Incomplete relief from your pain.[2]
Metatarsalgia mainly affects the bottom part of your second metatarsophalangeal joint i.e. the place, where your second toe joins your foot. However, any other metatarsal may experience the problem and in usual cases, two or more than two metatarsals effect on your feet. Whenever metatarsalgia affects the second joint associated with metatarsophalangeal area, doctors even refer it as metatarsophalangeal stress syndrome.
Extent of Pain Experienced by Metatarsalgia Patients
Metatarsalgia pain mainly forces you to feel as you have a deep bruise. In some cases, it feels like you have a rock beneath the balls of your feet. These symptoms become further worse while you stand barefoot or walk on a hard surface. Even the problem increases if you wear shoes with poor cushion, but reduce your symptoms while you are in well-cushioned footwear. During the end of your day with substantial walking or standing, the affected area may beat you to some extent.
In most of the cases, you notice the metatarsalgia pain at the bottom part of your foot’s ball without any swelling. However, with the progression of your disease, swelling takes place in combination with tenderness at the upper side of your joint. In addition, in some of the cases, bursitis forms adjacently towards the metatarsal. Along with this, if you are in the advance stage of your problem, ligaments present at the bottom of your joint and the entire joint capsule wear out and rupture, resulting in the hammertoe development in a progressive way.[3]
Conclusion
To conclude, we should say that surgery treatment is essential to cure patients experiencing metatarsalgia problem when traditional treatment procedures fail to manage symptoms. The procedure is simple and gives faster recovery, but in some cases, it involves few risks, because of which your recovery may delay.
- https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/metatarsalgia/symptoms-causes/syc-20354790#:~:text=Metatarsalgia%20(met%2Duh%2Dtahr,too%20tight%20or%20too%20loose.
- https://thrive.kaiserpermanente.org/care-near-you/northern-california/santarosa/departments/foot-ankle-surgery/foot-and-ankle-surgery/metatarsalgia/
- https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/15890-metatarsalgia
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