New procedure to remove painful bunions

Bunions are small bony bumps on the toes that create massive pain and problems. Surgery is the solution, but an old traditional method is being challenged by a newer, groundbreaking procedure.

It’s called a minimal bunionectomy, and it helped one woman get back on her feet.

Megan Christopher stays on the move as a mom of three teenage daughters; however, she was stopped in her tracks by painful bunions.

“I think, for me, at least, at night, when I finally took my shoes off and would be sitting down, my foot would just throb,” Christopher said.

After a painful open bunionectomy a few years ago, she investigated a new procedure called a minimally invasive bunionectomy.

Patients who undergo a minimally invasive bunionectomy can usually get into a normal shoe within six weeks and progress to biking and walking. Megan’s added bonus was not having to look at her distorted feet.

“Yeah, I’m back, like, I can get in shoes, and sometimes I’m walking in my closet, and I’ll stop, and I’m like, ‘oh my gosh, those are my feet. They look so good, like, they look so normal!””

The smaller minimally invasive incisions are performed with specialized instruments to realign the foot and remove pressure.

Doctors caution that not all bunions can be treated by this new surgical approach, and bunions may come back, but they are usually not as painful.