UFAI Bunion Articles Archives

What is a bunion? Bunions (hallux abducto Valgus or just hallux valgus in medical lingo) are a common and painful abnormality of the big toe joint (first metatarsophalangeal). Bunions affect nearly 25% of American adults 18 to 35 and over 33% of those over 65! While there are non-surgical things you can do to make bunions less uncomfortable, such as wearing read more »

Whether you call it your little toe, wee toe, baby toe, small toe, fifth toe, or pinky toe, that outermost pedal digit can cause outsized problems. The big toe, baby toe and heel stabilize the base of your foot Your foot forms a functional triangle. When you’re standing or walking, your heel supports most of your body weight, with the read more »

The following is a little technical, but we wanted to share it since it’s a very good encapsulation of the current state of modern minimally invasive Bunion surgery. It was written by University Foot and Ankle Institute’s own Dr. Bob Baravarian and was published in Local Podiatry Magazine: Bunion surgery is one of the most common surgeries in foot and read more »

Your big toe is more than just a device to locate bedposts and chair legs in the dark. The big toe is the only toe significant enough to get its own medical name. It’s dignified with the appellation “hallux”. The other four little piggies have to be satisfied with mere numbers. Whenever you are upright, there are crucial moments when read more »

A lot of bunion sufferers come to us stating that they avoided bunion surgery for years because they “heard” terrible things that are simply untrue about bunion surgery. Two examples of this are “bunion surgery hurts like crazy” and “why bother getting a bunion surgically repaired since they come back anyway.” There are many bunion surgery myths and we are read more »

Bunion surgery can be a troubling and difficult procedure for some patients. It can also be a very smooth, easy and highly successful procedure for others. The question is how can we make each bunion surgery be the best possible procedure for all patients? Which bunion surgery is right for me? At University Foot and Ankle Institute, our foot and read more »

Surgical correction of foot problems, like hammertoes and bunions, often requires using internal fixation devices like screws, pins, wires, rods, and rigid plates. Until recently, this hardware was made of metal alloys or stainless steel. In recent years, however, titanium became most surgeons’ metal of choice due to its high strength, versatility, and ability to resist corrosion. Are there side read more »

As we mature, we learn to deal with the inevitable bumps in the road and lumps in our throat. But we’re not always ready to cope when the lumps and bumps show up on our feet. The irrational belief that a problem will go away all by itself seems to be deeply ingrained in human nature. Take, just as a read more »

We’re seeking patients with bunions for a non-surgical research study. You do not need to be a patient of UFAI to participate. There is no cost to participate in the study. Persons who participate in this clinical trial will be helping evaluate the safety and effectiveness of a study medication compared with placebo (no active ingredients). The medicine is given read more »

What’s the difference between a Bunion (Hallux Valgus) and Big Toe Arthritis (Hallux Limitus)? It is not at all unusual for patients to confuse bunions and big toe arthritis because both these conditions can cause pain and a bump and enlargement at the big toe joint. But they are actually very different conditions. While you can delay bunion treatment until read more »