A bunion is a dislocated big toe joint that results in the head of the metatarsal becoming prominent appearing as bump on inside of the big toe.

While shoes and activity can aggravate a bunion, the cause is mostly genetic. So if your mom or dad had a bunion that’s most likely where yours came from.

Initial treatment consists of wearing wider shoes to help reduce pressure on the bump and toe spacers to realign the big toe while walking. Bunion splints can realign the toe while wearing it but the joint will return to it’s dislocated state when the splint is removed. A splint can NOT fix a bunion.

The only way to reduce a bunion deformity is through surgical correction. This involves cutting the metatarsal bone to realign the joint which reduces the bump. Depending on the type of procedure performed the recovery period can be 3-6 weeks or 6-9 weeks.