The problem started with an injury sustained while playing Ultimate Frisbee ten years ago.
I was sprinting down the length of the field and quickly stopped in order to make a defensive play. I heard a “POP” sound from my left foot. Ii didn’t hurt at all, so I played on.
Over the next ten years the 1st metatarsalphalangeal joint began to swell and become painful. The bump you can see in the picture is arthritic bone. The condition is called Hallux Limitus. It is a very common condition with athletes. Former Los Angeles Laker Shaquille O’Neal had the identical condition.
My surgery will consists of several parts:
1) Cheilectomy to clean up the bone chips and bone spurs in and around the joint
2) Micro-fracture to encourage new cartilage growth in the joint surfaces
3) Osteotomy to both the long metatarsal and the proximal phalanx to shorten and straighten these bones to give the best chance of slowing the inevitable return of the arthritis as I continue to age.
The recovery period is 8-12 weeks. The first 2 weeks are critical in order to insure that the bones heal properly. I have been commissioned as the Captain of the Couch.
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