History of surgical treatments for hallux valgus

In the nineteenth century, the prevalent understanding of the hallux valgus was that it was purely an enlargement of the soft tissue, first metatarsal head, or both, most commonly caused by ill-fitting footwear. Thus, treatment had varying results, with controversy over whether to remove the overlying bursa alone or in combination with an exostectomy of the medial head. Since 1871, when the surgical technique was first described, many surgical treatments for the correction of hallux valgus have been proposed. A number of these techniques have come into fashion, and others have fallen into oblivion. Progress in biomechanical knowledge, and improvements in materials and supports have allowed new techniques to be developed over the years. We have developed techniques that sacrifice the metatarsophalangeal joint (arthrodesis, arthroplasties), as well as conservative procedures, and one can distinguish those which only involve the soft tissues from those that are linked with a first ray osteotomy.