Bunions, which the Romans apparently thought resembled turnips and named accordingly in Latin, represent not simply a painful and unsightly foot condition, but a major biomechanical defect which much modern footwear does little to help.
This was the conclusion of four orthopedists during a recent Cleveland meeting of the American College of Surgeons.
All said that much of modern footwear, particularly shoes with pointed toes, restricts the toes and muscle action of the foot.
"I don't believe that the (hallux valgus) deformity is all due to crowding the toe in a shoe," Earl D. McBride, MD, told JAMAMedical News. Dr. McBride, who is clinical professor of orthopedic surgery at the University of Oklahoma School of Medicine, added, "the shoe no doubt hastens the deformity and makes it worse if heredity has predestined the foot to grow into such a conformation."
C. Leslie Mitchell, MD, chairman, Department of Orthopedic Surgery,