“I was operated to both feet: on one of them I had practically no pain, and the other was as good as new after two/three weeks. A month later, everything was fine with me and I was walking perfectly”, recalls Márcia Resende, of 28 years old. By her side, orthopaedist João Teixeira explains that the “secret” is in the surgical technique he uses for some years now, at Hospital da Luz Arrábida, in specific cases: the minimally invasive percutaneous osteotomy of the foot, which causes less pain in the postoperative stage and enables a faster recovery, compared with conventional surgery. Márcia explains that she was submitted to this surgery, “because I was experiencing pain on my left foot and also for aesthetical reasons”. It is not an unusual case, quite on the contrary, since bunions – the common name of hallux valgus – are one of the most common bone deformations of the foot. They tend to progress slowly and aggravate over time, and although they may occur on anyone, the fact is that they are mostly frequent in women. João Teixeira explains what is the percutaneous osteotomy of the foot and what are the benefits: “It consists in a cut to the bone, through a millimetric incision (2-5 mm). This allows to fixate the bone with screws, also through percutaneous route.” “It may be applied in light and moderate cases of hallux valgus , without arthrosis. It should be avoided in osteoporotic bones and it is contraindicated when there is cuneometatarsal instability or when there are degenerative alterations implying arthrotomy (open surgery of the joint).” “The big difference comparatively to the conventional technique is the use of a minimally invasive system – thus causing less aggression to the skin and tissues – which allows to perform all the steps of conventional “open” surgery, but with merely four small incisions.” “It allows a much faster perioperative period, and with much less pain, without medication and leaving no scars. Moreover, patients prove to be able to walk with normal footwear earlier in the postoperative stage.” “It takes the patient about three weeks to resume a relatively normal life. And three months after, the patient may resume sports practice, with no limitations.” “We believe this technique has the great advantage of replicating a surgery that was already producing good results, but now performed in a less invasive way for the patient.” “My view, corroborated by several scientific papers, is that immediate pain is relatively low. Conventional open surgery has considerable success on medium and long term, but it is still hard to control pain in the initial postoperative stage. This new 4 th generation technique of percutaneous surgery is much less painful.” The assessment and diagnosis of hallux valgus cases should be made in an Orthopaedics consultation . Schedule your appointments via MY LUZ or at https://www.hospitaldaluz.pt/arrabida/en/
