Bunion Surgery: Your Complete Guide to an Optimal Recovery

Bunions are bony — and often painful — bumps that form at the base of your big toe. You can develop a bunion when the top of your big toe points towards your other toes and the base of your toe slowly starts to jut outward as a result.

These common foot deformities can often be fixed with conservative treatments such as changing your footwear, icing the bunion regularly, and even going through physical therapy. However, in some cases, the bunion needs surgery in order to get you the relief you need.

While many times bunions are simply “shaved off” and slightly shifted during surgery, at the Foot and Ankle Institute of Colorado in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Matthew Hinderland, DPM, Jordan Cameron, DPM, Trevor Whiting, DPM, Joseph Fleck, DPM, and the rest of our podiatry team use Lapiplasty® 3D Bunion Correction™ to fully correct the foot deformity and restore stability to get you back on your feet quickly.

In this blog, we let you know what to expect during this surgery so you can recover as quickly and efficiently as possible.

What happens during the Lapiplasty procedure?

Bunions are much more than a cosmetic problem. They form because of an unstable joint, and Lapiplasty 3D Bunion Correction seeks to address this root cause. 

During this bunion surgery, our team goes in and realigns the entire metatarsal bone from all angles. We then secure the joint with titanium plates, ensuring you can have optimum stability and the bunion won’t come back.

How to best recover from a Lapiplasty correction

Traditional bunion surgeries require you to remain off your feet for as long as 6-8 weeks. However, going through Lapiplasty 3D Bunion Correction allows you to start putting weight on your affected foot as soon as 10 days after your surgery.

While recovery times are going to vary slightly from person to person, this is the recovery timeline we suggest following to ensure you can get back to your normal routine as soon as you can:

• After a few days to a few weeks: Start to put weight on your foot in a walking boot 
• For 6-8 weeks: Only walk in the walking boot before transitioning to comfortable shoes
• After 4-5 months: Resume all normal activities 

As long as you follow this timeline, you can ensure that the titanium plates can do their job and keep your foot stable. 

There may be other directions you need to follow depending on how severe your bunion was or if you have other underlying health conditions that may affect your recovery time. 

If you’re recovering from Lapiplasty 3D Bunion Correction and need more recovery tips or are getting one soon and would like more information on the surgery itself, reach out to the Foot and Ankle Institute of Colorado team with any questions. You can contact us over the phone at 719-488-4664, or book online today.