Hammertoes/Claw Toes

[megood]

Does anyone have experience with syndactilization of 3rd amd 4th toe to correct claw toe? If so, was it successful and do you recommend it? This was recommended to me because I was told I did not have sufficient bone in the 4th toe for a fusion.

[DrJim]

This is a highly succesful type of surgery, and due to a reduction in your bone stock, this is likely the best solution to your condition. If the claw toe is giving you problems ambulating and can not be relieved by a change in shoe gear or use of inserts, then surgery is a viable option. The amount of deformity in the toe will dictate how much bone will need to be removed to straigten the toe out. Another option may be to have an arthroplasty done on the single toe instead of the syndactilization, if the deformity can be corrected on the single toe by removing some bone and doing some soft tissue work, this would spare you from the other procedure. On the other hand, if the deformity can not be corrected in the single toe, you may need to have the syndactilization done to provide enough stability.

[megood]

Thank you for your information. The reason the syndactilization was suggested is that this toe has already been straightened three times - which is why the reduction in bone.

[DrJim]

Then in this case if the toe is still giving you problems, likely the syndactilization would cerainly be a viable option. As I stated before, most people do very well after this surgery. You are not healing up bone, only soft tissue, therefore, the recovery period is not as intense as with bone surgery.