[Influence of the presence or absence of the second hammertoe on clinical effect of hallux valgus].

Abstract

Objective: To compare clinical effect of Ludloff operation on the clinical efficacy of patients with hallux valgus combined with hammertoe of the second toe.

Methods: The clinical data of 66 patients with hallux valgus treated with Ludloff surgery from July 2015 to July 2022 were retrospectively analyzed. According to exclusion criteria, 33 patients with hallux valgus combined with hammertoe were finally included as case group, and 33 patients with simple hallux valgus were paired as control group. There were 11 males and 22 females in case group, aged from 24 to 62 years old with an average of (33.6±12.7) years old;body mass index (BMI) ranged from 19 to 25 kg·m^-2 with an average of(21.7±3.1) kg·m^-2;17 patients on the left side and 16 patients on the right side;hallux valgus angle (HVA) ranged from 25° to 47° with an average of (36.3±10.2) °;the intermetatarsal angle (IMA) ranged from 13° to 21° with an average of (16.9±3.2) °. There were 12 males and 21 females in control group, aged from 22 to 61 years old with an average of (32.2±10.9) years old;BMI ranged from 18 to 26 kg·m^-2 with an average of (22.0±4.2) kg·m^-2;15 patients on the left side and 18 patients on the right side;HVA ranged from 26° to 46° with an average of (37.2±9.3) °;IMA ranged from 12° to 21° with an average of (17.3±4.7) °. HVA, IMA, American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) forefoot scores and visual analogue scale (VAS) were compared at 3, 6 and 12 months after operation between two groups.

Results: Both groups were completed 1 year postoperative follow-up. Postoperative cutaneous margin necrosis occurred in 2 patients of case group and incision rupture occurred in 1 patient of control group. There was no significant difference between two groups (χ²=0.058, P>0.05). Both groups were achieved bone union at stageⅠat 12 weeks after opertaion, and no recurrence of bunion was observed during follow-up. Three months after operation, AOFAS forefoot function score of case group was (73.4±8.6), which was lower than that of control group (82.1±10.3), and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). There were no significant differences in HVA, IMA, AOFAS and VAS between two groups at 6 and 12 months after operation (P>0.05).

Conclusion: Ludloff surgery for the treatment of bunions with malleform toe of the second toe is slow in the early postoperative functional recovery, but it did not affect the long-term clinical outcome of the patients.