Rehabilitation Following Minimally Invasive Bunion Surgery

Keyhole bunion surgery recovery tends to be faster than traditional open surgery, however there are things to consider. Mr Gordon will discuss with you your personal recovery times as this will depend on your bone health, bunion severity and your general health.

Following surgery, you will walk out of hospital and put as much weight on your foot as you feel comfortable. No plaster, no crutches! You will go home the same day of surgery. You will wear a surgical sandal for 4 to 6 week and then wear a comfortable lace up trainer.

Mr. Gordon has designed a Rehabilitation Program exclusively for his patients undergoing the Minimally Invasive Bunion Surgery. This is provided following surgery. The aim is to reduce swelling, maintain joint mobility and get you back on your feet faster!

The First 2 Weeks After Surgery

Crucially, elevation 23 hours a day for the first week is needed, to reduce swelling and allow the small wounds to heal. After this, you can get about more but remain at home with periodic elevation, 40 minutes per hour.

When Can I Return To Work After Surgery?

This will depend on the type of work you do and your commute.

Sedentary jobs: Return after two weeks, if able to maintain foot elevated at level of waist, otherwise four weeks off
Standing/walking jobs: Return after four to six weeks, but may be sooner depending on comfort and swelling
Manual/labouring jobs: Return after 6 weeks, but may be sooner depending on comfort and swelling

When Can I Drive After Surgery?

You need to be able to control the vehicle in an emergency. Can you stamp your foot down on the ground? For left sided surgery and no clutch is required, driving is probably safe at 2 weeks post operatively. For right sided surgery, driving is probably safe at 4-6 weeks post operatively, once in a normal shoe.

Can I Wear Heels After Surgery?

Yes! Surgery is performed so you can wear the shoes you love, including heels. The soonest is 6 weeks following surgery but realistically because of slight swelling, this may be 3 to 6 months.

Can I Run After Surgery?

Yes! Surgery is performed so you can do the activities you used to enjoy, without pain. Mr Gordon has had one patient run a half marathon after 6 weeks, this is unusual though! Realistically, low impact activities can start at 6 weeks, progressing to running at 8 weeks.

How Long is the Recovery After Surgery?

This depends on how you define ‘recovery’. It will take 4 months to forget you have had surgery but you can resume strenuous activities way before then. Some patients have minimal swelling at 3 months, others it takes 6 months to settle.

Outcome data

You will be asked by Mr Gordon to take part in his bunion research and audit database. This allows him (and the scientific community) to study how well patients do after bunion surgery. Taking part is critical to advancing our knowledge of the condition and how best to treat bunions. Mr Gordon is constantly striving to improve patient care and outcomes. You can help shape this. You will be asked at various time points to contribute your thoughts and feelings on your surgery. This will be done via email to you in compliance with GDPR (data protection regulation).

Latest Outcome Results

These data are regularly updated to give you a live perspective of Mr Gordon’s patient’s outcomes following minimally invasive bunion surgery:

95% of patients stated the results of their bunion operation was Good, Very good or Excellent
96% of patients returned to the activities they previously were doing when well
86% of patients improvement in walking and standing
82% of patients stated they had a reduction in pain.