Hammer Toe Surgery - All You Need to Know

Hammer Toe Surgery - All You Need to Know

Hammer toe affects one or more of the three middle toes. It is often caused by wearing narrow shoes or shoes with little arch support. When a person has hammer toe, the toe will have an abnormal bend upwards at the toe’s middle joint. It is sometimes possible to manage hammer toe through lifestyle changes, but in other cases, hammer toe surgery may be necessary.

In this article, we give you a brief breakdown of what you expect with hammer toe surgery.

When do you need hammer toe surgery? 

Your foot specialist will only recommend hammer toe surgery as a last resort. Some of the treatments they may recommend before undertaking surgery include wearing more spacious shoes, wearing toe inserts, or physiotherapy. If you have other foot conditions like bunions, your podiatrist may choose to treat them all surgically. In other cases, like if you have poor circulation in your feet, your podiatrist may avoid surgery altogether. 

What should you expect during hammer toe surgery? 

Hammer toe surgery is an outpatient procedure often conducted local anesthesia. Once the procedure starts, the foot specialist will realign the bones and tendon of the toe. Each type of procedure addresses a different kind of hammer toe complication. The amount of time the procedure takes will depend on the extent of hammer toe in the foot.

How quickly will you recover? 

Typical recovery times for healthy individuals range from six weeks to three months, although this depends on the initial severity of the hammer toe. During recovery, there is not much you can do to speed things up. Your podiatrist will recommend lots of rest and little movement for at least the first two weeks. After three to four weeks, you should be able to move around, and gradually, you should be back to normal movement.

Are there any hammer toe surgery complications that can occur?

As with any surgery, some complications can occur.

Hammer toe foot surgery complications can include:

• Infection
• Formation of blood clots
• Nerve damage
• Allergic reaction to anesthesia
• Reversal of changes made to the toe

Will you need hammer toe surgery again? 

Affected toes can sometimes curl up again after hammer toe surgery. In such cases, it may be necessary to undergo additional surgery. However, for most people, hammer toe surgery is effective in treating pain, posture, and cosmetic problems.

How to prepare for your hammer toe surgery appointment

Before scheduling the surgery, here are several things you will need to cover:

• Discuss with your foot specialist about the surgical options you have, the pros and cons of each, and what the outlook is for the procedure you pick.
• Arrange to have someone pick you from the clinic after the procedure.
• Plan to have someone help you out in the house for a few days after you get home.
• Consider avoiding stairs as these can put tremendous strain on your healing foot.