Joint fusion in foot, any experience?

A friend of mine has had this op. It went well and the recovery seemed to be similar to her knee replacement. Of course as it wasn’t me I don’t really know how much pain etc.
She has special shoes, apparently there’s not much choice and she doesn’t find them satisfactory, but has managed to find ones from high street stores that are comfortable.
She does walk with a stick, but is now relatively pain free ( her other ankle has also arthritis) , she is happy that she had it done.

Thanks for info, especially worried about surgical boot and crutches as the leg I would be relying on has arthritis in knee and extra 'exercise' may exacerbate. Also recovery time and needing someone with me full time to help at first as I live alone.

I’ve had a big toe fused due to arthritis and apart from several weeks,while it healed and I had to wear a special shoe, it’s absolutely fine. Just have to wear flat shoes all the time.
Bonus is, no pain at all!!

I had surgery for an triple ankle fusion well over 30 years ago and have never looked back. I was in non weight bearing plaster for about two months and after that had to use a walking stick for some time. It was about a year before I felt the benefits of it and too date it's been great. I have to be careful when walking over cobbled streets as I don't have the flexibility in that ankle. In my case it was well worth having done but I was a lot younger, probably in my late 30s. As I said it was a long time ago now so not sure if this will be of any help to you.

I had a big toe fused and apparently a nerve was damaged because it’s been numb most of the time since. It doesn’t really matter but is uncomfortable.
If you’re in a lot of pain go ahead.

I saw a consultant anout big toe fusion a couple of years ago but as there was little movement in it anyway decided against surgery. It seems to have settled down a little snd am glad I didn’t have the operation now.
It seems like you need advice so I suggest you go to your gp in the first instance.

The non weight-bearing for around 2 months is the most difficult. I agree with spottysocks. It does take a year to return to normal, but it will be flat shoes I am afraid. I think that is a small price to pay to be pain free. May I say your Consultant should operate on feet only, more experience rather than one who also operates on hips and knees.

Had joint fusion in big toe about 10 years ago. Became so painful and used to swell up and go red and kept having cortisone injections which did help to start with but not pleasant and in the end surgery was offered. Had one night in hospital, had special ugly shoe to wear and told would never be able to wear high heels again. Totally pain free now but cannot move the toe and still wear heels (but not as high!) In my case very pleased with the surgery and no problems at all now.

I had the joint in my big toe fused 11 years ago. I remember a great deal of pain for the first 24 hours, but after that it was bearable. I had to wear a boot but wasn’t given crutches or anything. It was all fine and I’ve got used to only wearing flat shoes.
Last year I started getting a lot of pain again. After X-rays I learned that the hardware has broken in half and is digging into the bones and the top screw has broken in half and embedded itself in the bones! Apparently this is very rare and the surgeon seemed stumped by it and couldn’t believe I haven’t had a fall of some kind. So I’ve been waiting for the past year for an operation to remove the old hardware. Such fun!

I had a big toe fusion with a plate and 6 screws 3 years ago at the same time as a bunion was removed.
It wasn’t awful , although no driving for 20 weeks and it has cured my foot of the arthritic pain .
I am soon to have the other foot ‘done’ for similar arthritic deformities ( on the NHS).
Good Luck knspol

I had a total fusion of my left foot about two years ago.I was non weight bearing for thirteen weeks and a surgical boot for another month..Shoe shopping is difficult as I can't straighten my foot to get in certain shoes and boots are a no.It was quite painful for about a month and I was prescribed heavy duty painkillers.Everyone is different though and I send my best wishes to you and hope for a speedy recovery.

Which bones will be fused? I had the metatarsal bones in my left foot fused about ten years ago. I was in plaster for six weeks but have had no pain since then.

I had ankle fusion in May last year . I had a plaster cast on for 2 weeks . Non weight bearing for this time . Then on to a surgical boot . Had this for a month My ankle had fused and was solid enough to start wearing shoes. I have no pain now but took around a year for full recovery . I wear trainers or flats .

Forgot to add . You can get a knee scooter to get around . I never had one but have heard good things about them

I had 2 fusions of my metatarsals about 5 years ago and have been pain free since then. I agree with others that the non weight bearing bit is the worst part of the recovery but I used a knee scooter which you can hire from a company called Strideon. That made all the difference, especially when standing cooking or other tasks. It is so important that you don’t put weight on the fused foot. It’s certainly worth losing some flexibility to stop the pain. Good luck if you go ahead.

Thank you all so much for the info and advice. I'm told I need 3 fusions of metatarsals and have been seriously considering whether putting up with the pain is the better option when I live alone in quite a remote spot with no family nearby to help.