In this episode of The Pod Doctors podcast, Dr. Damien Dauphinee, a board-certified foot and ankle surgeon, and Dr. Raafae Hussain, fellowship trained foot and ankle surgeon, talk about hallux rigidus, a common problem and specific arthritic joint pain in the big toe. They share what they typically see with the disorder clinically and why x-rays are important to diagnose the problem. They also discuss the various treatment options for hallux rigidus.

QUOTES:

“A lot of people will come in with those memory foam, the gel inserts. And it’s like look, these are great and comfortable for the first day or two you wore them, but the problem isn’t that you’re walking on stones. The problem is that your foot is not functionally to its peak biomechanical ability.” - Dr. Raafae Hussain [12:37]

“The goal of the surgery is pain relief.” - Dr. Damien Dauphinee [21:07]

Top Takeaways:

• What is hallux rigidus?
• How does it differ from gout?
• What happens to your foot with hallux rigidus?
• Treatments options for hallux rigidus

What You Will Learn:

• [00:39] Intro
• [03:06] What is hallux rigidus?
• [03:59] What the Pod Doctors see clinically
• [06:58] What happens when you lose the joint movement compl?etely?
• [07:58] What happens to your foot with hallux rigidus
• [12:16] Why over-the-counter arch supports are not helpful for hallux rigidus
• [13:01] How x-rays determine how bad the joint is
• [13:49] Some conservative options to take care of the pain
• [16:04] Available procedures based on the damage

Resources:

Visit our website: https://thepoddoctors.com/

Book Mentioned: Saving Limbs, Saving Lives: Advanced Treatments for Preventing Amputations in Diabetic Populations by Dr. Damien Dauphinee