Bunions

A Bunion is a common, inherited, progressive problem of the great toe joint where the first metatarsal bone spreads outward and the big toe moves inward causing the joint to become deformed, weak and enlarged.  The side of the joint becomes irritated by shoes and the center of the joint becomes stiff and sore from arthritis.  

With time, as the deformity worsens from Stage I to Stage V, care for eliminating the pain and deformity of a bunion changes from non invasive treatments involving foot centering and kinesiology to a point where foot surgery becomes the only option for a cure.

With Neoteric Biomechanics (patent pending), Health Care Professionals now know that bunions surface at an early age and are caused by predictable foot type-specific weaknesses and pathology that age and deform the foot prematurely.

In an engineering sense, the first thing that happens (even before the bunion exists) is a collapse in the dynamic arches of the foot eliminating the ability of the bones to support the foot and provide a strong foundation for performing the weightbearing activities of life.  This collapse then causes a cascade of problems as muscles that cement the foot and posture lose leverage and their ability to perform as nature intended.

 A predictable “Bunion Cascade” including compensatory callus, hammertoes, thick toenails, neuromas, plantar fascitis, shin splints and knee, hip and lower back pain is the eventual fate of bunion feet.    

Utilizing Functional Foot Typing®, a new paradigm for diagnosing and treating feet developed by Dr. Shavelson, the existence of biomechanical pathology can be quickly diagnosed and foot centering and muscle strengthening treatment can be prescribed, foot type-specific that will stop the progression of the bunion cascade and depending at when it is uncovered, reverse some or all of the process without surgery.   

Architectually, the first thing to do to keep the bunion cascade from advancing is to center and support the feet with foot beds that provide Centring, foot type-specific.  These Foot Centrings® are a new generation of foot orthotics that prevent foot collapse enough to enable the muscles, tendons and ligaments to leverage and provide cement for the bones and renewed power and performance for the feet and posture like no other previous orthotics.

Once the foot is centered, a custom kinesiology program can be added to further strengthen and retrain the muscles to gain renewed leverage in order to perform work with power and efficiency

In most cases, feet treated with Foot Centrings® and Foot Centering KinesiologyTM become shorter, narrower, higher arched and display improved comfort, performance and shoe fit.

In advanced cases, the bunion cascade  has progressed to the point that in addition to revitalizing the feet architecturally, elective, corrective foot surgery must be considered for both short and long term improvement.

In summary, at The Foot Typing Center, it is our professional opinion that bunions are an inherited and progressive problem that is correctable and reversible utilizing non invasive care in many cases, the earlier, the better.  

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