Am I A Candidate For Lapiplasty Surgery?
Bunions are one of the most common conditions that Podiatrists and Orthopedic Surgeons treat in their practices. It is estimated that 20-35% of adults have bunions. Bunions can range in severity and often are a cause of a lot of pain and discomfort. They can make finding shoes that fit very difficult or impossible.
Traditional bunion surgeries like a simple osteotomy involve cutting the bone and shifting it to reduce the appearance of the deformity. This does not address the instability of the joint at the midfoot and may result in a relapse of the bunion. The overall recurrence rate after bunion surgery can be as high as 65%!
Lapiplasty surgery is a newer bunion surgery technique that corrects the bunion deformity in all three dimensions. During the procedure, the bone is shifted to correct the altered angulation, and then rotated to fully correct the deviation. Titanium plates are installed to correct the alignment at the base of the metatarsal bone for a more permanent correction. Two plates, placed perpendicularly to each other, are used and this provides significant stability.
Lapiplasty Surgery Disqualifiers
Patients under the age of 12 do not qualify for the procedure. Patients between the ages of 12-21 years of age will not qualify if the procedure is estimated to damage any open growth plates.
Patients with active infections will be denied surgery due to the severe complications involved with performing surgery with an active infection.
If the patient has bone loss or degeneration, surgery is likely to be denied.
Patients may be denied surgery if they are morbidly obese.
If a patient has a known history of sensitivity to implanted devices surgery might be denied. Material sensitivity tests are possible if the cause of the sensitivity is thought to be related to the material used.
If the surgeon believes that the patient would be incapable of following post-op care instructions that could lead to significant complications because of a mental or neurological condition, the surgery may also be denied.
Think Lapiplasty Surgery Is Right For You?
The only real way to know whether or not Lapiplasty surgery is right for you and your bunion deformity is to set up an appointment with your Orthopedic Surgeon or Podiatrist for a consultation. They will be able to review your case to determine if Lapiplasty surgery is right for you.
At Warner Orthopedics & Wellness, Kyle Lindow DPM is our leading Lapiplasty expert. Warner Orthopedics & Wellness is a Center of Excellence for Lapiplasty surgeries. Schedule an appointment with Dr. Lindow by calling our office at 225-754-8888.
