Stiff Big Toe - Halux Rigidus - Surgery

[okieopus]

Hey folks,

Does anyone on here know anything about Halux Rigidus (Stiff Big Toe)? I am scheduled to have a Cheilectomy soon and I am curius about recovery.

Thanks

[Patrick]

Hey folks,

Does anyone on here know anything about Halux Rigidus (Stiff Big Toe)? I am scheduled to have a Cheilectomy soon and I am curius about recovery.

Thanks

It's actually a form of degenerative arthritis (wearing out of the cartilage in a joint), like any other, caused most likely by overuse of the joints in the big toe. As with other joints, the more you use them, the quicker they wear out. The joint referenced here is at the base of the large toe.

Here's a nice pic:



It leads to stiffness and pain. With time it gets harder to bend the toe, as the joint degenerates.

It's a progressive condition that gets worse over time. Eventually, as the toe gets harder to move, it may become "frozen," and tough to move.

It's most commonly aggravated by the way your joint is structured. Similar to how Jason White's knee was mis-shappen leading to increased stress on his musculature.

What the cheilectomy will do is alter the bone structure, and remove spurs, etc. to hopefully improve the overall function of the joint. The position and shapes of the bones in the big toe will be altered, and arthritic damamge will be removed from the joints. Hopefully this will preserve and restore normal alignment of the joint, as well as reduce pain, and improve function.

This is the least aggressive treatment at the moment.

If the problem doesn't resolve with this treatment, they may have to go in and fuse the bones or replace the joint, as would be done in a hip or knee replacement.

Hope this helps!

[okieopus]

Thanks Patrick,

Do you know anything about recovery time?

[Patrick]

Recovery time is tough to say, and typically depends on the person.

It will most likely be done as an outpatient procedure with local anesthesia, so you should be home that day. But, for the first week, you may want to limit pressure on your toe, and you'll probably be given some easy exercises to do to promote healing. You can probably start some limited walking after that, maybe sooner depending on your comfort level. I'd say the scar should heal up over 3-4 weeks, with gradual progression of functional use of the toe from there. You'll probably remain in surgical shoes for 4 weeks. I'd say after 6 weeks you'll be able to walk with minimal discomfort, return to full walking at 8 weeks, and probably return to running at 8 weeks. That's just a rule of thumb though.

Again, it depends on the person. I've seen people recover faster, and others take more time to recover.

Best of luck with the surgery. If you need anything else, feel free to ask.

[okieopus]

Patrick,

I had the surgery last Friday, and it feels better, but the swelling is still pretty severe. Is that normal?

[beatrice999]

Hi: I just joined tonight looking for information of this very thing. I had the surgery on my toe on September 19 and wore a boot for three weeks. First couple of days were pretty painful but I found wearing the boot pretty hard. It is now three months and I am wearing tennis shoes without any pain. I do however have swelling, enough that I cant wear my regular shoes and my question was "how long will this swelling go on" and "is this normal". I may have to go back to the doctor. I hate to complain as my toe is great and I walk very well without pain. I hope this helps and I would like an answer to my questions.

[Vikkyvoo]

Hello there, Ive just posted my concerns on the same thing. How are you getting on? My surgery if in a couple of weeks and although that does not worry me the outcome does. I have to have a joint replacement and I'm worried I wont be able to wear normal shoes and what is going to happen when the replacement does not work anymore. I'd be very pleased if you could help in anyway.

Thanks from worried Vikkyvoo.

[pattymac06]

My doctor wants to do a joint replacement and bunion surgery on my right big toe. What is the success rate and recovery time? Thanks

[okieopus]

Patty,

I just had a bone spur removed and I was up and walking with a boot in about 4 days. I would imagine that joint replacement might take a week or so, before you could walk on it.

Hope this helps