Tarsal Tunnel Release Surgery May Be Needed To Relieve The Pain Of Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome
If your podiatrist has diagnosed you with tarsal tunnel syndrome, they may try to put you on various treatments to relieve your pain and help the condition heal. Sometimes, rest, proper foot and ankle care, and wearing a brace or shoe orthotics can help your foot and ankle recover from tarsal tunnel syndrome. However, in other cases, surgery might be needed.
If treatments and medications don't relieve your foot and ankle pain, surgery might be necessary to get relief. Here's an overview of the surgery you might have for tarsal tunnel syndrome.
Tarsal Tunnel Release Is An Outpatient Surgery
This surgery is usually done in an outpatient clinic, so you'll get to go home the same day. You may have general anesthesia, so you'll need time to recover from the procedure before you can leave. You'll also need someone to drive you and offer help until you're safe at home.
Your podiatrist will determine if you can partially bear weight after your surgery or if you need to use crutches. If you'll need crutches, you should have them with you, and have practice using them, so you can use the crutches to leave the foot and ankle care clinic.
Tarsal Tunnel Release Relieves Nerve Compression
The reason tarsal tunnel syndrome is so painful is that inflammation in a ligament causes the ligament to enlarge and press against a nerve. This condition might come on suddenly due to an injury or the nerve compression might be slower to develop due to a chronic foot condition or old injury.
Proper foot and ankle care is important for any foot condition, including tarsal tunnel because chronic inflammation can result in nerve damage and muscle weakness in your foot.
Foot And Ankle Care Needed After Surgery
Your foot has to be wrapped in bandages after the surgery, so you need to keep your foot dry. You will have a follow-up appointment in several days when your podiatrist will remove the bandages. At that point, you might resume walking and build up your tolerance for walking daily.
You might receive pain medications and anti-inflammatory drugs after your surgery. The incision for this surgery runs along your ankle and foot and your podiatrist may have you monitor the incision for signs of infection so it can be treated promptly.
It could be several weeks until your surgery has healed and you can resume your usual activities. However, the speed of your recovery depends on the damage done to the tibial nerve. It might take several months to fully recover if your foot had more severe nerve damage. To learn more, contact a foot and ankle clinic.
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