Bunion Specialist

PMC Foot and Ankle Clinic

Eric Blanson, DPM

Sports Medicine & Foot and Ankle Surgeon located in Woodlands, Shenandoah, TX

Bunions are painful bony deformities that create a bump on the side of your big toe and affect your foot function. Eric Blanson, DPM, and the team at PMC Foot and Ankle Clinic in Spring, Texas, provide specialized foot care for bunions. The practice offers a wide variety of treatments for bunions at every stage of development, including physical therapy, medication, and orthotics. If you have a growing bunion, find out about your treatment options by calling the office or use the online scheduling tool to book a consultation.

832-210-2561

Bunion Q & A

What is a bunion?

Bunions develop when the metatarsal bone behind the big toe moves out of place, forcing the top of your big toe to turn inward and the joint at the base of the toe to shift outward.

Bunions are a common source of foot pain and, because they form at a critical joint of the foot, they can make it difficult to wear shoes, limiting your mobility. Bunions are also unsightly and may make you self-conscious about the appearance of your feet.

What are the symptoms of a bunion?

Along with pain that comes and goes, bunions can cause symptoms that include:

A bump on the base of your big toe
Swelling or soreness at the big toe joint
Corns or calluses
Limited mobility of your big toe

If left untreated, bunions can result in complications like bursitis, in which the fluid-filled sac (bursa) that surrounds and cushions the joint becomes inflamed, making the entire joint stiff and painful.

Bunions can also result in hammertoe, an abnormal bend in the middle joint of your toe, as well as metatarsalgia, which causes pain and swelling in the ball of your foot.

How do you diagnose bunions?

Your provider at PMC Foot and Ankle Clinic performs a physical examination to judge the severity of your bunion. They may recommend an X-ray to confirm the diagnosis and measure the angles between certain bones.

How do you treat bunions?

At PMC Foot and Ankle Clinic, your provider starts with conservative treatments that can vary depending on the severity of your bunion. Some noninvasive recommendations may include:

Wearing more comfortable shoes
Using foot padding or shoe inserts
Taking medication for pain relief
Icing to reduce swelling

If these treatments aren’t helping and your bunion lingers, causing pain and interfering with daily activities, your provider may recommend surgery to realign the bones into a more normal position.

What happens during bunion surgery?

There are many types of bunion surgical procedures that help to reposition your toes and relieve pain. Your provider may remove the inflamed tissue around your toe joint or cut out small amounts of bone in order to straighten your toe.

They may also realign the bones in your foot to a more normal position to correct the abnormal angle and join the bones of your affected joint permanently.

Full recovery from a bunion procedure can take two months or more, but you can get up and walk around almost immediately after your bunion procedure. Your provider may prescribe pain medication and recommend specialty shoes to wear during and after your recovery.

To learn more about various bunion treatment options, call PMC Foot and Ankle Clinic or use the online booking tool to schedule a consultation.