After waking in the middle of the night because her foot felt like it was on fire, Grace Hamilton made an appointment with her podiatrist. Her increasingly painful bunion had progressively worsened over time, causing a hot and constantly numbing pain.

As an outside sales rep, she had to be aware of her professional dress and the shoes she wore to visit clients. Her toe, having moved in such a degree it was impacting other toes, made her fashionable boots a problem to wear. Flat shoes were now her only option. “The shoes I loved to wear were no longer comfortable,” she explains. “My left foot looked so ugly, I was embarrassed because I couldn’t wear sandals because the bunion looked so awful.” Her ability to power walk, up to five miles a day, also began to decline.

After learning a bit about Lapiplasty® 3D Bunion Correction^™ from her doctor, Grace met with podiatric surgeon Dr. Adam Perler of Alexander Orthopaedic Associates in St. Petersburg, FL for a bunion surgery consultation. “He explained to me in laymen’s terms that the new procedure corrects the root of the problem – an unstable joint in the middle of the foot — making it a more effective correction than the older way of performing bunion surgery (osteotomies),” says Grace. Unlike the traditional surgery, Lapiplasty® 3D Bunion^™ Correction would correct the bunion in all three dimensions and use special titanium plates to permanently secure the unstable joint— allowing patients to quickly bear weight in a walking boot after surgery, while assisting in the reduction of the risk of recurrence.1

“It made perfect sense to me that Lapiplasty® [3D Bunion Correction^™] is the procedure you want to have when having bunion surgery. The old way had a high rate of bunions coming back!2” she explained. Grace opted for the Lapiplasty® Procedure on her left foot in May 2019 with hopes that her recovery wouldn’t interfere with a planned trip to Denver. She also aspired to wearing sandals she couldn’t consider before, because of the bunion.

Grace worked from home for two weeks after undergoing Lapiplasty® 3D Bunion^™ Correction^™ and used a knee walker to get around. Friends would stop by and mention her mood and demeanor was very positive throughout her recovery. By mid-June, she was in a walking boot. “The physical therapists I saw after surgery until mid-July were amazed at how quickly I was able to heal.” A client sent her a care package of foot products and they were “amazed to hear of my recovery” as well.

Grace reports she didn’t have much pain during recovery and is pleased with her Lapiplasty® 3D Bunion^™ Correction experience. “I now look good in the sandals I was embarrassed to put on before. Numerous clients asked me about the Lapiplasty® [Procedure] because they put their own bunion surgeries off. But, after seeing me, they now want to get it done!”

1. Ray J, et al. Foot Ankle Int. 2019.
2. Jeuken RM, et al. Foot Ankle Int. 2016. 37:687-95.

Only a surgeon can tell if Lapiplasty® 3D Bunion Correction^™ is right for you. As with any medical treatment, individual results may vary and this experience is unique and specific to this patient only. There are potential risks with surgery and recovery takes time. Potential risks include, but are not limited to: infection, discomfort from the presence of the implant, loosening of the implant, and loss of correction with nonunion or malunion.