Treating Your Bunions

Surgery is often needed when you have a bunion, but surgical intervention is not inevitable. There are quite a few things that you and your podiatrist can do to manage bunions before surgery is recommended. Our podiatrist, Dr. Joseph DiFranco from DiFranco Family Foot Care in Erie, PA commonly treats bunions. He can help guide you on the best treatment strategy for your bunion.

What Are Bunions?

Bunions are a deformity of the foot where the big toe joint becomes dislocated. This sometimes leads to a protrusion on the inside of your foot at the junction where the big toe meets the rest of the foot. In some severely progressed cases, the big toe may be displaced so much that it lays on top of the second toe, a condition known as crossover toe.

Bunions range in severity from a mild nagging annoyance to a very painful condition. Bunions progress and get worse if exposure to improper stresses and friction continues. The moral of the story here is that you must take action as soon as possible after being diagnosed with a bunion.

How Are Bunions Treated?

Before you need surgery for your bunion, there are non-surgical measures that you can take to stop or slow down its progression. Our podiatrist can guide you in managing your bunions in Erie, PA. Some conservative measures that Dr. DiFranco recommends for managing bunions are:

• Make sure your shoes fit well. Shoes should be roomy in the toe area. Squished toes will cause excessive stress and friction on the big toe joint. This will lead to further displacement of the big toe joint, causing your bunion to get worse.
• Shop for new shoes in the evening. Our feet are slightly swollen in the later hours of the day. Shoes will fit a little differently in the morning.
• Measure your foot size each time you buy a pair of new shoes. As we get older, our arches tend to fall and not be as supportive. This causes your feet to flatten and you may need to buy a larger size of shoe than you are used to.
• Maintain a healthy weight, avoiding excess stress on the foot.
• Custom orthotics worn in your shoes may help.
• Pain medication and anti-inflammatory drugs, both prescription and over-the-counter, may help relieve discomfort.

When the above conservative measures have been tried and failed, surgery will be recommended. Surgery for the removal of a bunion is called a bunionectomy.  This procedure will remove the bunion and correct the anatomy of the foot.

Contact Us To Schedule a Consultation

Take the first step towards treating bunions in Erie, PA by making an appointment with Dr. DiFranco by calling (814) 217-0618.