Question by Ms Koh
I'm a 28-year-old runner, and I've got hereditary bunions. They've never given me much problems until recently: The bunion on my left foot is getting bigger, and while it doesn't hurt, it sometimes causes me to feel slightly imbalanced when I'm running or just standing. I've contemplated having it surgically removed, but I've read that bunionectomies typically lead to loss of range of motion in the foot. Is this true?
Reply from Ms Jessie Phua
Senior sports podiatrist, Changi Sports Medicine Centre
Bunions form often as result of progressive misalignment of the big toe joint. The most common causes are faulty foot biomechanics and family history of bunions. It is also often aggravated by ill-fitting footwear.
The increase in the size of the bunion on your left foot is likely to be caused by excessive weight or shoe pressure applied to the area. High impact activities, such as running, put a lot of added stress and extra weight on your big toe joint.
It is true that your big toe joint's range of motion may be limited or reduced after the operation. You will also be put out of action for six to eight weeks. While you can resume normal activities, the foot is at risk for swelling for up to six months.
Other post-op risks include infection, pain, nerve damage, possible recurrence.
Surgery is usually the last option after you have tried other forms of conservative management. If you are contemplating surgery, you should consult an orthopaedic surgeon on the pros and cons of the procedure as it is very important to be realistic about your expectations and the possible outcomes.
Since you feel slightly imbalanced during running and standing, you may want to see a podiatrist, who will conduct an examination to determine if you need prescribed insoles. The insoles can help correct biomechanical abnormalities, improve foot function and slow down progression of the deformity. However, they won't correct misalignment of the joints or the deformity.
The information provided above is for your general knowledge only. You should seek medical advice or treatment for your condition. Email questions to health@newstoday.com.sg.
From TODAY, Plus – Tuesday, 29-Sep-2009
Posted: 17 June 2009 0816 hrs
US Congress
WASHINGTON: Congress on Tuesday gave final approval to a 106 billion dollar emergency bill to pay for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, shore up efforts to fight H1N1 flu, and fund US participation in the IMF.
By a vote of 226 to 202, lawmakers in the US House of Representatives approved a compromise version of legislation, to reconcile differing House and Senate versions.
Among other budget items, the measure provides 79.9 billion dollars for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, 7.7 billion dollars to combat the Influenza A(H1N1) flu virus, and 8 billion dollars for the International Monetary Fund.
House Democrat David Obey, a key figure during negotiations on the spending measure talks in that chamber, acknowledged some resistance among lawmakers to the IMF funding, but said the monies were necessary to bolster a still-sagging global economy.
"You know, this is a tough reality. We have to participate in the world, and when the world economy becomes shaky, we have a responsibility to ourselves to try to stabilise that world economic situation," he said.
The supplemental spending measure was bogged down after the Senate legislation – over the objections of Democrats in the House – banned public release of the controversial images allegedly showing abuse of detainees in Iraq and Afghanistan at the hands of US military personnel.
President Barack Obama broke the logjam last week, however, offering in a letter to negotiators, to "continue to take every legal and administrative remedy available to me to ensure the ... detainee photographs are not released".
The compromise bill also includes provisions on prisoners held at Guantanamo Bay, but does not include the 80 million dollars originally requested by the Obama administration to close the detention facility at the US naval base in southern Cuba, where some 230 detainees remain.
Under the agreement reached by the Senate and the House, a Democratic source said the government could transfer some prisoners to US soil only to face trial, although the highly sensitive issue of where they would serve out their sentence remains unresolved.
- AFP/so
From ChannelNewsAsia.com; see the source article here.![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_sO1V2jp5jlwkZj9FYn740BvWMGzFWnS65i9c3Kw650kIJc9fEFuwx2otThYAMeVHjRRLuyCLCJdEAOPol4uY6kHz31rVQ6GZCUIOGsRV1KUffe0b5ncbCo6iLUe2U1HDXT4Ez43nJoJJ6mX-nob-re=s0-d)
I'm a 28-year-old runner, and I've got hereditary bunions. They've never given me much problems until recently: The bunion on my left foot is getting bigger, and while it doesn't hurt, it sometimes causes me to feel slightly imbalanced when I'm running or just standing. I've contemplated having it surgically removed, but I've read that bunionectomies typically lead to loss of range of motion in the foot. Is this true?
