Why Your Bunions Keep Coming Back and What You Can Do About It

Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsCausesBunion Formation: How New Symptoms StartWhat Worsens BunionsMinimizing Flares

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

Causes

Bunion Formation: How New Symptoms Start

What Worsens Bunions

Minimizing Flares

Bunions (hallux valgus) occur when something puts extra pressure on the big toe, pushing it out of its natural alignment and toward the other toes.A bump forms on the outside of the base of the big toe. Bunions are often painful and can limit toe movement. Bunions form gradually, but a flare of bunion pain may occur suddenly.

The exact causes of bunions are unknown, but possible theories include:

Causes of Ongoing Bunions and Severe Pain

Bunions are common foot problems. In the United States, bunions affect one-third of the population.The global prevalence of hallux valgus is around 19%.

The condition is more prevalent in the following groups:

Additional risk factors for bunions include the following:

Bunions develop on the inside edge of themetatarsophalangeal (MTP) joint, where the base of the big toe meets the foot.A bunion in your MTP joint will develop slowly. You may not notice it until you experience a sudden flare of pain. Without treatment, the bunion will get worse over time and cause you pain and discomfort.

When you get a bunion, the bones around your big toe shift while the metatarsal bone pushes up against the skin. Over time, the bump will also become more pronounced and painful.

Signs and symptoms of a bunion include:

Causes Compared: What Is Worse for Bunions?

Many people experience bunions from wearing tight-fitting shoes or shoes that are narrow, pointy, or compress the toes together.These shoe types place more pressure on your toes.

Tight-fitting shoes can lead toinflammationof the big toe if you already have a bunion. You may also experience pain while walking.

Wearing supportive and wider shoes can also help reduce bunions and bunion pain from other causes. For example, many people develop bunions because of the foot structure they were born with or because of an inflammatory condition like rheumatoid arthritis.

Comfortable and supportive shoes can help prevent bunions or bunion pain linked to these risk factors.

Shoe ChoiceMaking the right shoe choices can reduce foot pain. The best options are shoes that ensure the foot is supported and have a wide toe box to allow enough room for your toes.

Shoe Choice

Making the right shoe choices can reduce foot pain. The best options are shoes that ensure the foot is supported and have a wide toe box to allow enough room for your toes.

How to Minimize Bunion Flares

Bunions do not always cause pain. Plenty of people have small bunions that do not produce symptoms. But as the bunion gets more pronounced or if it becomes irritated or inflamed, you experience pain, swelling, or a burning sensation.

You may experience a sudden bunion flare from:

If you find that at-home treatments are not helping to manage bunion pain, consider scheduling an appointment with apodiatrist. A podiatrist is a doctor of podiatric medicine (DPM) who diagnoses and treats problems of the foot, ankle, and lower legs. A podiatrist may recommend additional therapies to help you manage bunion pain and symptoms.

Dry Needling

Podiatrists sometimes recommend dry needling to treat bunions. Dry needling may eliminate bunions, restore the toe joint’s mobility, and reduce pain intensity when used for this purpose.

Dry needling involves using a microfine needle to release trigger points. It may also stimulate the body to release pain-killing endorphins and cortisol to reduce inflammation and speed healing.

Surgery

If your bunions are extremely painful, the bunion causes problems with walking, or nonsurgical treatment has not helped, a podiatrist may recommend surgery.Surgery may restore the big toe’s natural angle, correct the bunion deformity, and reduce pain and discomfort.

Differentsurgical proceduresmay help correct bunions.The type of surgery used will depend on the size of the bunion. Surgery recommendations will be based on the X-rays and physical exam findings.

Most bunion surgeries aresame-day proceduresthat do not require a hospital stay. You will need to stay off the affected foot for a short period.

Summary

Bunions are bony bumps that form near the base of the big toe. They can become red and swollen and cause much pain. In severe cases, they can cause significant swelling, making it hard to find comfortable-fitting shoes and pain with walking.

Bunions develop slowly, so you may not realize you have one until you experience pain or discomfort. Causes include family history, foot structure problems, pregnancy, inflammatory arthritis, ill-fitting shoes, and injury to the foot or toe.

Wearing comfortable, wide-toe shoes can reduce your risk for bunions. This is especially important if you have a family history of bunions, inflammatory arthritis, or foot structure problems like flat feet.

You can manage a bunion flare with ice, NSAIDs, wearing comfortable shoes, custom orthotics, or toe splints (taping the affected toe at night), and using OTC gel pads. A podiatrist can recommend additional treatment options like dry needling and, if needed, surgery.

9 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.Bunions.MedlinePlus.Bunions.Cai Y, Song Y, He M, et al.Global prevalence and incidence of hallux valgus: a systematic review and meta-analysis.J Foot Ankle Res. 2023;16(1):63. doi:10.1186/s13047-023-00661-9Kaiser Permanente.Flatfoot (pes planus).Harvard Health Publishing.What to do about bunions.Heronemus MJ, Rabe K, Tolstykh I, et al.The association of parity with greater dynamic pronation of the feet.PM R. 2021;13(2):144-152. doi:10.1002/pmrj.12381Penn Medicine.Bunions - symptoms and causes.Hurn SE, Vicenzino BT, Smith MD. Non-surgical treatment of hallux valgus: a current practice survey of Australian podiatrists.J Foot Ankle Res. 2016;9:16. doi:10.1186/s13047-016-0146-5Kharazmi AS, Okhovatian F, Baghban AA, Mosallanezhad Z, Kojidi MM, Azimi H.Effects of dry needling on symptomatic hallux valgus: a randomized single blind clinical trial.J Bodyw Mov Ther. 2020;24(3):246-251. doi:10.1016/j.jbmt.2020.02.016

9 Sources

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.Bunions.MedlinePlus.Bunions.Cai Y, Song Y, He M, et al.Global prevalence and incidence of hallux valgus: a systematic review and meta-analysis.J Foot Ankle Res. 2023;16(1):63. doi:10.1186/s13047-023-00661-9Kaiser Permanente.Flatfoot (pes planus).Harvard Health Publishing.What to do about bunions.Heronemus MJ, Rabe K, Tolstykh I, et al.The association of parity with greater dynamic pronation of the feet.PM R. 2021;13(2):144-152. doi:10.1002/pmrj.12381Penn Medicine.Bunions - symptoms and causes.Hurn SE, Vicenzino BT, Smith MD. Non-surgical treatment of hallux valgus: a current practice survey of Australian podiatrists.J Foot Ankle Res. 2016;9:16. doi:10.1186/s13047-016-0146-5Kharazmi AS, Okhovatian F, Baghban AA, Mosallanezhad Z, Kojidi MM, Azimi H.Effects of dry needling on symptomatic hallux valgus: a randomized single blind clinical trial.J Bodyw Mov Ther. 2020;24(3):246-251. doi:10.1016/j.jbmt.2020.02.016

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.Bunions.MedlinePlus.Bunions.Cai Y, Song Y, He M, et al.Global prevalence and incidence of hallux valgus: a systematic review and meta-analysis.J Foot Ankle Res. 2023;16(1):63. doi:10.1186/s13047-023-00661-9Kaiser Permanente.Flatfoot (pes planus).Harvard Health Publishing.What to do about bunions.Heronemus MJ, Rabe K, Tolstykh I, et al.The association of parity with greater dynamic pronation of the feet.PM R. 2021;13(2):144-152. doi:10.1002/pmrj.12381Penn Medicine.Bunions - symptoms and causes.Hurn SE, Vicenzino BT, Smith MD. Non-surgical treatment of hallux valgus: a current practice survey of Australian podiatrists.J Foot Ankle Res. 2016;9:16. doi:10.1186/s13047-016-0146-5Kharazmi AS, Okhovatian F, Baghban AA, Mosallanezhad Z, Kojidi MM, Azimi H.Effects of dry needling on symptomatic hallux valgus: a randomized single blind clinical trial.J Bodyw Mov Ther. 2020;24(3):246-251. doi:10.1016/j.jbmt.2020.02.016

American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.Bunions.

MedlinePlus.Bunions.

Cai Y, Song Y, He M, et al.Global prevalence and incidence of hallux valgus: a systematic review and meta-analysis.J Foot Ankle Res. 2023;16(1):63. doi:10.1186/s13047-023-00661-9

Kaiser Permanente.Flatfoot (pes planus).

Harvard Health Publishing.What to do about bunions.

Heronemus MJ, Rabe K, Tolstykh I, et al.The association of parity with greater dynamic pronation of the feet.PM R. 2021;13(2):144-152. doi:10.1002/pmrj.12381

Penn Medicine.Bunions - symptoms and causes.

Hurn SE, Vicenzino BT, Smith MD. Non-surgical treatment of hallux valgus: a current practice survey of Australian podiatrists.J Foot Ankle Res. 2016;9:16. doi:10.1186/s13047-016-0146-5

Kharazmi AS, Okhovatian F, Baghban AA, Mosallanezhad Z, Kojidi MM, Azimi H.Effects of dry needling on symptomatic hallux valgus: a randomized single blind clinical trial.J Bodyw Mov Ther. 2020;24(3):246-251. doi:10.1016/j.jbmt.2020.02.016

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