The authors evaluated 33 patients (48 feet) with moderate to severe hallux valgus, surgically treated by using a 1st metatarsal wedged base osteotomy technique associated to soft tissues repair. Comparisons correlating gender, age, and x-ray parameters were performed by using the t-test for independent samples; sesamoid deviation was compared by Kruskal-Wallis non-parametric test. All patients answered to a questionnaire in which they expressed their degree of satisfaction regarding the final results of the surgery. Seventy six per cent of patients were women between 14 and 60 years old (average 38.15 years old) with an average follow-up time of 41 months. There was no difference in x-ray variation concerning gender. There were no pre or postoperative differences when mean scores for right and left feet were compared. X-ray evaluation presented 73% of excellent results and the degree of total satisfaction with the method was 60.7%. There is no evidence proving that age may influence the patients' degree of satisfaction; nevertheless, all patients above 60 years old reported to be partially satisfied. We concluded that this surgical procedure is an efficient and safe method for the treatment of moderate and severe hallux valgus.
Hallux valgus; Osteotomy; Metatarsus
