🇺🇸 Reddit Lapidus bunionectomy overcorrection second opinion recovery story
I’m a foot & ankle surgeon and one of the hardest parts of my job isn’t the surgery—it’s meeting someone months later who says, “My bunion was mild… why does my foot hurt more now than before?”
Today is May 5, 2026, and I keep thinking about a Reddit story I saw that hit a little too close to home: someone had a Lapidus bunionectomy (July 2024) for a “mild bunion,” did the boot/non-weightbearing/follow-ups, and still ended up with persistent nerve pain, swelling, a new bump near the big/second toe, and a toe that looked lifted/misaligned. Eventually the first surgeon basically admitted it was an overcorrection (hallux varus territory), and the proposed “solution” was big toe fusion.
Instead, the patient got a second opinion and had a Lapidus revision with better alignment—then described immediate improvement in appearance, toe position, and far fewer nerve symptoms.
That arc—failed bunion surgery → scary recommendation → second opinion → revision success—is exactly why I tell people bunion correction surgery isn’t just “shaving a bump.”
A few practical takeaways (especially for anyone here dealing with bunions, foot function, or running shoe choices):
1) A Lapidus bunionectomy is powerful… and not always the right hammer.
Lapidus = fusion at the first tarsometatarsal joint to address instability + realign the first metatarsal. It can be an excellent procedure, but it’s typically more “heavy-duty” than what many people imagine when they hear bunion surgery.
If someone truly has a mild bunion and good stability, there are often other procedures that may fit better (and sometimes no surgery at all).
2) Overcorrection can be more disabling than the bunion.
People think the main risk is the bunion “coming back.” In reality, a big issue is ending up too far the other direction—big toe pulled inward/away from the second toe, elevated, stiff, hard to load, weird push-off, difficulty fitting shoes, etc. That’s when walking feels off and running becomes a question mark.
3) Persistent “zingers,” burning, or blood-rush sensations aren’t something to just tough out.
Nerve irritation after bunion correction can happen, but when it’s persistent + paired with alignment problems, it’s worth asking: is the toe positioned well? is hardware irritating something? is there an imbalance in the soft tissues? is the first ray sitting too high/too low?
4) Second opinions matter most when the next step is irreversible.
The moment you hear “fusion” (especially big toe fusion) as the fix for a complication, it’s completely reasonable to pause and get another set of eyes—preferably someone who does a lot of revision bunion surgery. Sometimes fusion is absolutely the right call. Sometimes it’s a salvage option offered too early because the underlying issue wasn’t fully re-evaluated.
5) For runners: alignment + shoe strategy can make or break your comeback.
After bunion surgery (or while avoiding it), a wide toe box + stable platform can change symptoms fast. A lot of folks do better in shoes that reduce big toe torque during toe-off. If you’re in r/runningshoegeeks or r/running, you already know how dramatic shoe geometry can be for forefoot comfort.
I’m curious from this community:
- Anyone here had a Lapidus bunionectomy and felt like it was “too much surgery” for your bunion?
- Anyone deal with overcorrection / hallux varus after bunion correction?
- For the runners: what shoe models helped most during return-to-run after bunion surgery (or while managing bunion pain non-surgically)?
If you’re comfortable sharing your story (good or bad), it’ll help the next person reading this at 2am wondering if what they’re feeling is “normal recovery” or a sign they need help.
Posted May 5, 2026, 5:24 PM UTC