surgery bunion recovery problems

New Feet Please! · Newbie Joined: 30 Nov 2007 Posts: 7

I did the right foot on 11.27.07 and just did the left foot on 1.29.08. I had the same procedure (bunionectomy - 2 screws, 2,3,4,5 hammertoe correction with joint spacer implants) but my this time I am in WAY more pain. Percocet doesn't even touch it. Ice and elevation barely help (plus I am sick of laying in bed all day). Surgeon says my foot looks great and I go for xrays on Wed. If this had happen with the first foot, I probably wouldn't have attempted it again. Needless to say, I probably won't be going back to work for a couple of weeks. It just goes to show how very individual recovery is. Best wishes to everyone that is recovering.

imperialdyme · Newbie Joined: 17 Feb 2008 Posts: 1

I was planning on doing both feet for a bunionectomy and hammertoe repairs and chickened out last minute deciding to only do my right foot. I did a bunionectomy and hammertoe repair on toes 2,3,4, and 5 on my right foot. I glad at this point I only did one foot bc the pain is unbareable. I did the surgery 4 days ago and the throbbing is so painful. Not to mention I get jolts of pain every so often shooting through my toes. I was put on demerol pain relieving tablets bc all the others make me nautious based on past experiences. The demerol doesn't help much, just helps me go to sleep easier. Nothing so far has taken the pain away and I can't want for my foot to heal. I didnt get any screws and Im only 24 so I guess I should be better off. Guess some people have better experiences, age doesn't eliminate pain. Well I dont know what happens now but I go for a follow up appointment in 4 days to change the dressing, I heard that part is painful. I don't have a hard cast, just a whole bunch of ace bandage wrappings but my toes flex every so often as a reflex because im so use to moving them and that's even more painful. Maybe I wil request a cast or something. Any suggestions for the pain, and maybe eating or doing something to help the healing process?

New Feet Please! · Newbie Joined: 30 Nov 2007 Posts: 7

Hi Imperialdyme,

I was going to do the same thing - both feet at once. My surgeon was totally against it and I'm glad I didn't either. Though you may be doing this already, keep your foot as high up as possible and use ice (or a bag of frozen veggies). Only get up out of pure necessity! The first week was the toughest for me with both of my surgeries. Do you have a rocker boot? I felt better when my foot had to be down being the boot (more padding, more support). You may ask your surgeon about it. Dressing changes hopefully won't be too bad. What also may be adding to your pain is the thickness (and therefore the weight) of the bandaging. Possibly you may want to ask for a lighter dressing. Hope this helped and hold tight! My hope is that it will get better for you day by day.

bdrennen · Newbie Joined: 20 Feb 2008 Posts: 1

I had my second bunion surgery in 20 years on my left foot 6 weeks ago. My advice to anyone having bunion problems is this - GET IT FIXED. I waited so long that I suffered (unknowingly) a stress facture. The longer bone of my big toe did not heal correctly. This simple bunionectomy, turned very bad. When my surgeon cut into the large bone to free up the big toe joint (which I knew about), he found that the interior of the bone had developed a tumor. He had seen this a few other times. My was very large, due to the fact that I had put the surgery off for many years. I could have seriously jeopardized my foot with the delay. If the bone had shattered, I would have lost my big toe and part of my foot. I now have a plate and several screws in my foot. Although the recovery is going well, I was extremely surprised when I woke up from the surgery only to find that it was 3 hours later and my foot was in a removable cast from toe to knee and nurses surrounding me saying, "you can't put ANY pressure on your foot." I had planned to return to work a few days later (I have an office position where I could sit and elevate my foot). I am now on disability and out of work for at least 7-8 weeks. Since I live where it is now winter, I am confined to my home, cannot drive, have to use a walker, and had to impose on family and friends for everything from doing my laundry to getting my groceries.
In short....don't delay if you are having bunion pain. It could be worse than you think. This is nothing to fool around with. At 56 years old, I could have lost part of my foot causing me more than just physical pain - but could have resulted in financial impacts if I couldn't work. Please take my advice....get your bunions taken care of. You won't regret it![/b]

swudan · Newbie Joined: 19 Apr 2008 Posts: 1

I had my second bunionectomy 3 days ago (4/16) on my right foot. The left foot was done abou 4 years ago. Both procedures involve shaving off the bump, breaking and re-aligning the toe bones with pins and screws. My bunions are considered borderline between "Moderate" and "Severe", as the doc at one point was considering doing a "base procedure", which involves breaking and realigning the longer bone at the bottom of the foot. The "base procedure" would put me in a cast for at least 4 weeks. After reviewing results from my first surgery and considering that I need to take care of 2 little boys, the doc and I determined that the "head procedure" would be more suitable for me.

With the lastest surgery, I had a lot of pain during the first 24 hours, as even Percoset didn't seem to do much. But the pain is a lot better the second day and I've basically taking Aleve and Tylenol since. Currently the swelling is bothering me somewhat, so I tried to keep it elevated and iced as much as possible. I hope that this will also soon pass. Currently I move about in a surgical boot with crutches. I saw a lot of posts mentioning being in crutches for 2 weeks but I think the time varies with individuals. After my first precedure 4 years ago I had to walk with crutches for 4 weeks because my bones did not heal as well as expected. I will try to keep up with my daily vitamin and calcium this time around, hoping that will make a difference.

I am extremely pleased with the results of my first surgery and am looking forward to live free of foot pain after recovering from this one. I am currently 36 years old and enjoy an active life style so not having the bunions will be a great improvement for my quality of life. Furthermore, both my mother and my mother-in-law have bunions, they are both in their 70s and the bunions are now very severe. My mother in law is also constantly struggling with overlapping toes, hammer toes and corns resulting from the big tow pushing inward. Not wanting that to happen to me is also another motivation to have it done soon.

I have consulted several doctors about my feet and realized they have different level of expertise. Some may advertise procedures that seem to have a short recovery time but may have a high chance of recurrence later on. If you are also considering surgery it would be very helpful to do a lot of research a head of time and seek second opinion.

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I had surgery five days ago and am doing much better now. I had a rough 24 hours at first. The vicodin made me puke so I was without pain meds for most of the first 24 hours. My cast also had to be changed because my heel was rubbing so bad. I have a hard cast up to my knee, it is horrible. No weight bearing for 6 weeks! This cast feels better. Although I am not supposed to bear weight, I started to fall today and caught myself of course with my bad foot and bent my toes, OUCH! I hope this does not impair my recovery! Any thoughts?

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I also need bunion surgery on both feet, but the problem I have is Arthritis in both feet. Along with the bunions, my toes are bent under. I think they call that hammer toes and all my toes are shifting in the opposite direction making it just about impossible to buy shoes. Does anyone else also have the problem with Arthritis. I'm scared to death to have the surgery not knowing how extensive it will be and how long the healing time will take. I'm not one for sitting still.

cthutch50 · Newbie Joined: 04 Jun 2008 Posts: 2

I'm on Day 19 after Taylor's Bunion surgery. No swelling but still very painful. Need the meds by the end of the day no matter how long I sit with the foot elevated and use ice packs. Is it normal to have pain at this point?

wifey2mikey · Newbie Joined: 05 Jun 2008 Posts: 2

I am 39 and had a lapidus bunionectomy on May 21st. Things are going pretty well... I didn't have a lot of pain afterwards and stopped taking the Rx pain meds after one day. Swelling has been okay too. I'm in a walking boot so it could be expanded for swelling and easy access to incisions to monitor for infection - but I am not allowed to put any weight on the foot yet. I have my 3 week appointment next Tuesday - and hopefully the xrays will show healing. I may get a hard cast at that point if incisions are healed up well.

The worst part for me has been the lack of mobility. I too am not a person that sits around the house, and as the surgery was on my right foot I've been unable to drive or go anywhere unless someone takes me. I did rent a roll-about rather than use crutches and I think that was a good move. It has been pretty easy to get around - easier I think than crutches would have been. I sympathize with anyone going through this... it is a hard surgery I think mainly because of the degree it affects mobility. I'm hoping and praying that I recover quickly (meaning as the doctor predicted) without any complications. I wish that for everyone on here as well.

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