I was told I have Hallux Rigidus and the start of arthritis

[Trulysad-76]

Can any body help? What does the doctor mean it’s the start of arthritis? How bad can this get and do I ever need to worry about it?

[Bananas5]

Have a listen here...it may help you to understand your condition

x

foothealthfacts.org/conditi...

[katieoxo60 in reply to Bananas5]

Interesting link, thank you x

[Bananas5 in reply to katieoxo60]

You are welcome.. Have all these snippets tucked away deep in my cupboard!!

x

[Trulysad-76 in reply to Bananas5]

Thank you so much for the link xx

[cyberbarn]

I have hallux rigidus in both feet. I see a podiatric surgeon who does both the non-invasive interventions as well as surgery. Have you seen a podiatrist yet? They are the experts in feet and can help a lot. If you take preventative actions now, such as bespoke insoles and appropriate shoes, it will slow down the progress.

It is caused by arthritis, that is where the protective covering of the inside of the joint, the cartilage, gets worn away. There are various reasons why this happens and can be different in different people. But the outcome is that as the cartilage wears away it will get more painful.

Sometimes new bone is made which can mean you grow a lump of bone on the top of your foot. If this is a problem they can take it off. When the condition gets really bad they can either replace the joint, or fuse the joint, both of which should remove the pain. This pain is acute pain caused by exposed nerves in the bone, it isn't chronic pain.

I have just had a joint replacement in one of my feet. It is called a silastic replacement, so it isn't quite the same as a hip replacement but it is the same principle. This will give me back my functioning toe (it will bend properly which means that I will be able to walk properly and have less pain in other joints such as my hips) as well as removing the pain in the joint.

I would highly recommend you see if you can self refer to a podiatrist, and if not ask your GP for a referral. They really do know about this stuff much better than most GPs.

[Trulysad-76 in reply to cyberbarn]

Thank you so much cybernarn, I really appreciate the advice and will book an appointment with a doctor xx