Podiatrist Dale Brink, DPM,* of Performance Foot and Ankle, achieved a first for the South Suburbs in 2017 when he successfully performed a revolutionary new approach to traditional bone surgery called Lapiplasty bunionectomy at UChicago Medicine Ingalls Memorial Hospital.
Two years later and dozens of Lapiplasty procedures completed, Brink continues to perfect his technique and participates in nationwide efforts to improve the surgery.
The Lapiplasty procedure corrects the root cause of bunions – a misaligned toe bone – while dramatically reducing the time patients have to wait to bear weight on the affected foot. The technique is a new approach to a traditional Lapidus mastectomy.
“Contrary to popular belief, bunions are often complex deformities that result from joint problems in the midfoot,” Brink said. “The root cause of a bunion is an unstable joint at the base of the base of the metatarsal bone.”
With an unbalanced foot, the bone tilts out of alignment and creates a bump on the side of the foot at the base of the big toe. Most callus treatments only treat the top of the metatarsal and ignore the real problem: the unstable joint.
“A common misconception is that a bunion is just an overgrowth of bone that can be ‘shaved off,'” Brink said. During an osteotomy or Lapidus choleectomy, the surgeon cuts and displaces the top of the bone, treating the symptoms or lump.
“The osteotomy is a two-dimensional solution to a three-dimensional problem,” Brink said. With the unstable joint still in its foundation, the underlying cause of the bony deformity is not addressed and is therefore prone to return. The Lapiplasty procedure, however, addresses the root of the problem.
“Using advanced instrumentation, the entire metatarsal bone is corrected in all three dimensions, restoring it to its proper alignment while naturally removing the bulge and straightening the toe,” added Brink. “The unstable joint is then fused with titanium plates, which permanently secure the correction in place. Although recurrences can occur, Lapiplasty dramatically reduces the risk of recurrence.”
Since the procedure uses advanced fixation technology, many patients are able to bear weight on their leg within days of surgery — much less than the six weeks after a traditional bunionectomy. Also, footwear choices and physical activity are not limited after Lapioplasty.
“With the procedure at Ingalls, we have achieved Lapiplasty Center of Excellence designation as a high-volume center in Illinois,” said Brink.
Cherlyn Plaia, a 74-year-old who works as a crossing guard in Thornton, decided to have the Lapiplasty procedure on her left leg when her painful bunion prevented her from walking for more than 30 minutes at a time. She also found it increasingly difficult to spend much time on her feet.
“I’m turning 75 next year and I’ve always wanted to go to the Canadian Rockies,” Plaia said. “I knew I had to work on my leg to walk during my trip.”
Plaia experienced very little pain after the operation. The hardest part, he said, was maneuvering with a walker for a short time before switching to a walking boot.
“I am ecstatic to have had the surgery and have been very pleased with my physical therapy experience in South Holland,” said Plaia. “Dr. Brink is a super guy.”
Brink attended an event in the summer of 2019 with the inventors of the Lapiplasty technology, as well as podiatrists and surgeons from around the country, to analyze case studies, learn new techniques and glean improvements to the already highly successful procedure. “There are always little tweaks to make it even better,” Brink said.
*Dr. Dale Brink is an independent physician and is not an employee or agent of Ingalls Memorial Hospital or the University of Chicago Medical Center (“UChicago Medicine”).
