bone spur surgery on top of big toe: recovery time

I see the surgeon next week...the toe almost has no bend. Before the surgery I was told the toes don't bend because of the bone spur - but now there is no bone spur and the joint still has almost no upward bend. I think at 6 months now this is as good as it's going to get. To keep it at a compfortable level I am restricting my walking in the same way I was before the surgery. And I still can't buy shoes or walking boots. So - after all that pain and 6 months of physio excersises really there has been no improvement to my quality of life. It's frustrating! I really don't want to go through all that again but if they said they could take me in on Christmas Eve I'd go for it! lol That's be perfect cos folk would be home to walk my dogs!!!!! And I don't want to miss another 'summer'.The surgeon seemed really good so I expect he will be helpful. I hope so!

Janet.. Mine was almost exactly the same.. removal of the bone spur gave me good dorsiflexion.. and about 40 degrees, but over the period of the next 6 months, in both the Cheilectomy and replacement operations, the movement gradually reduced to almost nothing.

When I asked my surgeon who did the recent fusion what the problem was he said it was a substantial amount of scar tissue had been created that would never have gone away.

I do scar in a big way..that's just me.. I have scars on my body to show for it... perhaps that's why replacement implants work for some people but not others.

SteveR

 

 

 

Heck that's bad luck - but interesting. They seem very clear before surgery that the results can't be predicted but work well for most people - so there can be quite a difference in how people heal. So it might be the hole drilling can create too much scar tissue - added to the complicatios of having a more damaged joint. I saw a physio friend who did say ouch when I mentioned the hole drilling - she said that can make healing can be really slow and painful.

Seen my surgeon who is booking me in for forced manipulation to see if he can get more movement from the joint through buting through the scar tissue- under a general anasthetic and ankle block. If that fails or increase the pain it'd then be a fusion - ut he saysI will know fairly quickly if it's likely to have helped.  I was tempted to wait a few more months to see how it went but he reackons what movement you get at 6 months dosen't tend to improve.  Some people it works some it dosent and the only way to know is to try! So fingers crossed!

That's exactly what  they tried with me in September, and for the first 36 hours I thought it had fixed it.. then the pain killers wore off and it just got worse again.. I wish you better luck.

I'm at 3 weeks  + 2 days after fusion now.. and amazed. I got shoes on yesterday and walked aroung the City for an hour doing Christmas shopping. Virtually pain free, although I am now aware of the sesamoid issue I had before.!. But nothing compared to the previous joint pain.

Steve

 

Yes I thought it was...I just hope I have better luck!  He said I'd know very quickly if it had helped. He did offer to jump straight to a fusion if I wanted but he thinks it is well worth giving this a try first.

Glad your fusion is working..what a relief! :)

Hello. So I just, recently, figured out that I have a massive bone spur in my toe.  About 2 months ago, doctors thought it was a ingrown toe nail.  After getting that removed, my toe was completely red for about a month and a half after the procedure.  My primary doctor told me to go see another foot doctor, and we did.  When we took xrays, it looked like it was about to come out of my toe.  He said for me, being 16, that I was too young.  I am having surgery 2 days after christmas.  Thinking that christmas break would be a time to get better, I have honor band and I am one of the top musicians.  Rehearsals start 6 days after my surgery.  I really would like to do this.  I am really freaking out about the surgery, as it is, but I really want to be okay for honor band.  The doctor said my bone spur is as big as my pinky toe.  How long did it take you guys to recover?  Thanks!C:

Hi Guest12.. well you have age on your side, unlike the majority posting here! Do you know what is causing the bone spur? I've had 3 ops on my big toe in 3 years, and each time I have noted much the same things. First, you can write off day one and two, just getting over the main effects of anaesthetic.. and then swelling is an issue. I expect you will have a bandage on for about 10-14 days which will then come off and hopefully the wound will only need a sticky plaster for a week or so. Swelling is likely to be significant and painful in the first couple of weeks and will restrict your mobility... the main relief coming from lying on the sofa with your foot in the air. Ibrubrofen and paracetamol will help with this. my guess is you would find it difficult to get to rehearsals at 6 days and be comfortable. I would also suspect your surgeon would advise against it. In the first two cases I still had swelling at 3 months (and more), making wearing normal shoes difficult/impossible. Sandals were ok though, but not fun in the Winter! At the moment I am 6 weeks post fusion and walking almost normally in normal shoes. I'm no doctor, so please read this as my personal experience. Drug names and terminology as used in the UK. Steve

Oh you poor thing! 16! The shoe they give you isn't very fashionable You will have crutches to help you get around for as long as you need them - and one good foot...so hopefully you will be fine! I'd guess it is a deformed growth rather then wear and tear damage? Do you know what it is? I get the impression it is just the badly damaged joints that take ages to recover. My good foot just needed the joint cleaning up and the bone spur removing and yes i agree with steve - don't expect too much the first days, take yoir pain meds! Keep your foot up as much as you can - for the first 2 weeks - then start physio bending as soon as the dressing is off. By 6 to 8 weeks you should be recovering well if the surgery dosen't discover any extra complications and starting to feel the benefits of the surgery. My good foot was great really from 8 weeks on. but 7 months on it is still recovering but not bad at all! The odds are you will be okay enough for your rehersals. I hope so. Keep us posted on how you get on. My other foot isn't good - but it is much more damaged which seems to be the case when people have slow and more painful recovery times or need more surgery. But I bet you will not have much damage. try to see if they can find out what caused it though cos it sounds really odd.

Oh whooops!!!! I just saw you said 6 days! Sorry...heck!!! just see what your surgeon tells you - I expect it will be fine if you put your foot up cos you will have crutches. But don't overdo it..they signed me off work for 8 weeks..then another 8 weeks! lol When I saw my surgeon 6 months later and he wants to do more I started going on about competing and he said my priorities were confused! That I need to get my mobility sorted before I worry about competing! Good luck.

Thanks for the info! We honestly have no clue. About 2 months ago, my toe was completely swelled up and we went to urgent care. The doctOrs gave me 12 numbing shots the first time and took somee nail off. After a week it was still red. We went back and they took some more off. 2 days later i went to a "foot specialist" and got the whole toe nail removed. When we did xrays that day, i saw something. I asked him what it was and he said it was just part of the bone surgery. After a month and a half it was still red. My mom took my to another doctor and we did more xrays. When we saw it, it was ginormous. It looks like it will come out of my toe any moment. He said he doesnt know why my past doctor didnt catch it. I have marched on this toe after the toenail procedure 4 times. I am having surgery right after christmas. Its just a pain. My new doctot didnt tell me what the cause of it was. But thanks for the advice! If you have any more PLEASE let me know (:

Sounds very strange! But at least they can sort it. Straight after the surgery it  might feel really comfortable but that's the meds! If you need it to be good fairly fast even if it feels fine when you get home just don't walk on it just rest it and use the crutches and your good foot. Well - hopefully this will be the end of your toe problems!

I had this operation a year ago come February and am still in sheer agony from it… what my doctor is still calling the ‘healing process’, there are little shoes I can wear and little sports i can do! I recommend doing as little as possible after the op. for as long as possible, as they say it for a reason. I learnt the hard way!

Just had surgery l week ago. Bone spur and arthritis, base of big toe. Never took pain pills either. Some discomfort, but not pain. Hate the shoe. Stitches maybe come out on Fri. Can't wait until I can wear all my shoes and be comfortable walking. Thanks for the positive post.

Hope your fusion is still going well. :) I had the manipulation 3 days ago..had a full bend the first day..less the next and almost none again today. I have been doing all the bending physio and weight bearing excersises and also made wedges from gel insoles for my shoes to force the joint upwards and tied it up for the night to stretch the toe and force it to bend until it got too painful... It is frustrating to get my hopes up for nothing so I do hope somehow I can get this to work. I am really trying. It is like having a toothache in my toe! Hopefully it will get better.... On the plus side the procedure isn't too bad at all so it is worth trying.