Get your hallux valgus treated in Nice
Looking for a surgeon for your hallux valgus in Nice? Call on Dr Julien Lopez, a specialist in foot surgery. To treat hallux valgus and other pathologies of the foot and ankle, Doctor Julien Lopez performs minimally invasive and percutaneous surgery. This technique is now a reference in orthopedic surgery and for hallux valgus surgery.
Julien Lopez, your hallux valgus surgeon in Nice
As a surgeon of Hallux Valgus in Nice, Dr. Julien Lopez specialized in orthopedic foot and ankle surgery in the South-East region. He practises mainly in Nice, Cap d'Ail and Mandelieu-La-Napoule. He can also receive patients who live in Corsica.
He mainly treats pathologies of the forefoot, such as hallux valgus, of the hindfoot as well as trauma related sports injuries to the foot. Lopez has recently earned the title of “sports physician”, which allows him to bring a medical approach in addition to his surgical approach.
As a member of the French Association of Foot Surgery, Dr. Julien Lopez is committed to practicing percutaneous and minimally invasive surgical techniques, in addition to arthroscopy. All of these modern surgical techniques make it possible to reduce the size of scars and accelerate post-operative recovery.
What is a hallux valgus?
The hallux valgus, of the Latin «hallux»: big toe and «valgus», «turned out», also called «onion of the foot», is a condition of the forefoot of which the big toe deviates towards the outside, combined with a deviation towards the inside of the first metatarsal (we speak of metatarsus varus).
This deviation causes a bony protrusion on the inner edge of the foot and, moreover, the deviation of the hallux towards the other toes. This deformation can cause other pathologies such as the claw of the second toe.
If in some cases the hallux valgus does not cause pain, it can nevertheless be painful when walking. The protruding area will rub on the shoe and create calluses, resulting in inflammation or strokes. There are 3 stages of hallux valgus:
- The light hallux valgus
- The moderate valgus hallux
- The hallux valgus severe
Why have hallux valgus surgery?
If the condition is not treated, it can lead to certain complications: pain, skin infections, evolution of the claw of the second toe, difficulty to put on shoes or osteoarthritis of the big toe. To avoid contracting a severe form of hallux valgus, surgery is required to treat hallux valgus.
The operation has several objectives:
- Correct the deformation by restoring the bone alignments of the hallux.
- Correct the foot to make it “fit” (the operation should allow the patient to wear all types of shoes).
- Eliminate pain in the foot.
- Allow the patient to repeat sports activity without limitations.
Important: The risk of recurrence is reduced if surgical management is conducted early. Indeed, the risk of recurrence depends on the effectiveness of the surgical correction. The more severe the hallux valgus, the more difficult it is for the surgeon to correct it effectively.
How does a hallux valgus operation work in Nice?
Do you plan to consult a practitioner for a hallux valgus surgery in Nice? Before undergoing such a procedure, it is essential to identify the type of treatment needed. After the precise analysis of your condition, Dr. Julien Lopez selects the most suitable surgical method to treat it.
Particularly passionate about this pathology, Dr. Julien Lopez performs foot surgery for hallux valgus in Nice with minimally invasive surgical techniques. This type of intervention limits complications and post-operative pain.
What is mini-invasive hallux valgus surgery?
Minimally invasive surgery refers to all micro incisive and percutaneous surgical techniques. This type of intervention can combine classic surgery with percutaneous surgery. We are also talking about laser surgery. It allows the practitioner to reach his target by making small punctiform incisions using specific instruments, in addition to an intraoperative imaging system.
Performed most often under loco-regional anesthesia (ALR), the operation can also be done under general anesthesia. It is performed on an outpatient basis and lasts 30 minutes, allowing the patient to leave the clinic the same day.
In practice, the surgeon performs an osteotomy in the cervix of the metatarsal gland to push the metatarsal head back into its initial location. For the result to be «ideal», he makes a small fracture in the phalanx using a percutaneous technique. To stabilize fractures, the surgeon uses screws. Bone consolidation usually takes 45 days.
Dr Julien Lopez combines the minimally invasive and percutaneous techniques to perform hallux valgus surgery in Nice. Minimally invasive surgery has the same goals as conventional surgery, but the incisions are smaller.
Hospitalization and procedure
The operation of the hallux valgus is performed on an outpatient basis (during one day) but can also be completed over several days depending on the patient’s social or medical situation. The duration of the intervention is 30 to 45 minutes, depending on the size of the deformation, the associated gestures or the possible surgical difficulties.
At least 48 hours before the operation, the patient is called for a pre-anesthetic consultation (CPA), in order to assess his health and to define the type of anesthesia that will be administered. The patient must come to the consultation with a complete medical record. Attention, if your health situation changes between the consultation and the operation, you must report it to the anesthetist.
- On the day of the procedure, the patient is goes into the pre-anesthesia room to perform regional anesthesia before being taken to the operating room.
- Once in the operating room, you will be put asleep on your back.
- Once the patient is asleep, the surgeon makes the percutaneous incision. He then makes a section of the retracted structures before the osteotomy. For severe deformations, Dr Lopez also uses a minimally invasive and percutaneous technique.
- To make the bump disappear, we translate the head of the metatarsal and/or we make a fracture on the first phalanx. After the osteotomy, the doctor resets the big toe and relaxes the retracted parts.
- At the end of the operation, Dr. Lopez uses a dressing which should be kept for 21 days (unless otherwise instructed).
The following operations
After the operation, the foot remains anesthetized for 12 hours. Once the foot is awake, the patient usually feels pain for the next 48 hours. To relieve and prevent it, a painkiller treatment is prescribed. This treatment also helps avoid algoneurodystrophy complications.
It is possible to fully support the foot after the operation and to wear post-operative shoes for 21 days after the operation. It is advisable to walk with the whole foot, and not only with the lateral edge of the foot or the heel. It is possible to walk barefoot at your home, without the shoe. Avoid long walks where possible. Following a hallux valgus operation in Nice, work can resume after 30 or 45 days on average. For sports, the patient can cycle or swim from the first month after the operation. For other activities, it is necessary to wait until the beginning of the third month after the intervention.
Hallux valgus operation in Nice and its surroundings
Looking for a surgeon for a hallux valgus surgery in Nice and its surroundings? Julien Lopez consults in the cities of Nice, Cap d'Ail and Mandelieu-La-Napoule.
In Nice, consultations are held at the Centre Médicale Le Régina (Les Salons du Régina, 73 Bd de Cimiez, 06000 Nice) or at the Institut Niçois du Sport et de l'Arthrose (29 Avenue Simone Veil), 06200 Nice
In Cap d'Ail, at his office (120 Avenue du Trois Septembre, 06320 Cap d'Ail).
In Mandelieu-la-Napoule, at the Medxcare Paramedical Medical Centre (2 Hélène Boucher Avenue, 06210 Mandelieu-la-Napoule).
Contact an orthopedic surgeon in Nice for my Hallux Valgus
To contact an orthopedic doctor in Nice for your hallux valgus, you can make an appointment with Dr. Julien Lopez via the website, via the Doctolib platform or directly by phone at 06 71 00 19 23. If you have any additional questions, you can also write to Dr. Lopez at seceretariat@chirurgie-pied-sport.com.
