When bumps start appearing on the side of one or both of your big toe joints, it means you’ve begun to develop bunions. Sometimes bunions stay small and don’t interfere with your life, but as they keep growing, they can cause pain, make mobility more difficult, and change the alignment of your feet for the worse.
Bunions have many different causes, and according to bunion specialist Thomas Rambacher, DPM, FACFAS, FAPWCA, from Podiatry Hotline Foot & Ankle Mission Viejo, California, one common cause is your genetics. If you've inherited hypermobility in your feet, that can sometimes lead to developing bunions.
Discover the connection between foot hypermobility and bunions, and how you can treat disruptive bunions.
If you have hypermobility, it means some or all of the ligaments in your joints are unusually loose. This common tissue disorder can impact your feet, toes, ankles, and elsewhere on your body.
Hypermobility doesn’t always cause additional problems, but some people experience symptoms like pain, fatigue, motor clumsiness when walking or moving, and stiffness in the joints and muscles. Occasionally, hypermobility is a sign of a more serious underlying condition, such as Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, Marfan syndrome, and Down syndrome.
Hypermobility is a genetic condition that can cause or contribute to developing bunions. This is because a loose foot or toe joint can cause your foot to be unstable in its movement. These movements, over time, can result in you developing bunions.
Alongside genetic hypermobility, some lifestyle factors can make your bunions worse. These include:
Hypermobility can also cause you to have incorrect foot mechanics, another risk factor for developing bunions.
Living with bunions can be difficult, but thankfully, Dr. Rambacher helps you manage or remove your bunions with conservative solutions or surgery. If your bunions are still small and haven’t impacted your foot alignment, you can often manage them with conservative methods.
For conservative treatment, Dr. Rambacher recommends methods such as NSAIDs and other pain medication, corticosteroid injections, and custom orthotics. Custom orthotics also have the benefit of treating any other symptoms caused by your hypermobility by helping your foot alignment.
If your bunion is painful, causing foot alignment problems, or making mobility more difficult, Dr. Rambacher can remove it surgically. As a Fellow of the American Board of Podiatric Surgery, he is current on the latest surgical techniques for bunion removal and offers customized surgical options that are minimally invasive, with shorter recovery time.
After removing your bunions, Dr. Rambacher helps manage the hypermobility in your feet or ankles to reduce your risk of developing bunions again. He also assists you with managing any mobility instability, pain, swelling, or discomfort you experience from foot hypermobility.
If you have bunions, suffer from hypermobility, or have other side effects from hypermobile feet, Dr. Rambacher offers treatment and management of your condition. Call us, or book online to schedule your consultation.
