Tailors bunion
Tailors bunion, also known as bunionette, is to the little toe what hallux valgus (bunion) is to the big toe. It is characterized by pain and inflammation of the little toe, with a visible deviation of the fifth toe to the medial side. A tailors bunion is less frequent than the classical hallux valgus deformity, but can sometimes come together with a hallux valgus deformity specially for patients with a splay foot.
As for hallux valgus pain will arise when wearing shoes. The fifth toe joint will become inflamed, swollen and painful because of shoe pressure. It is sometimes accompanied by an overlapping toe deformity or hammertoe deformity of the fifth toe.
In order to analyze the degree of the deformity I will advice you to do an x-ray of your foot and then examine your foot. An individualized treatment plan will then be discussed.
Similar to hallux valgus treatment conservative treament options include shoe wear modifications, physiotherapy and eventually insoles.
Should conservative methods not be effective a surgical procedure can help very effectively. The painful bone will be translated and fixed with a little screw. The surgery can be done in local anesthesia.
After surgery you have to wear a special shoe for 4 weeks until an x- ray is done to prove that the bone healing is completed.