Foot Houston FAQ

A Bunion is a deformity that results in a painful great toe joint. This can often be described as the bone or tissue around the joint of the big toe (metatarsophalangeal joint) being enlarged. The tissues surrounding the joint often become swollen and tender when the great toe (hallux) moves toward the seconds toe.

Bunions are often due to a hereditary trait. They often occur in families.

Bunion deformity results in the tendons, ligaments and supportive structures from the first metatarsal being positioned incorrectly. Genetic conditions such as excessive flexibility of ligaments, flat feet and abnormal bone structure can often cause bunions. Shoes do not cause bunions but they can irritate an existing one and cause it to hurt.

Dr. Nagler works on hundreds of patients from all over Texas, the United States, South America and Central America. Many patients purposely seek out Dr. Nagler for his expertise in foot and ankle surgeries. He has perfected a unique cosmetic incision that leaves very little scaring. He also uses a special pain pump that delivers a small amount of aesthetic to the surgical site resulting in no or very little post-operative pain.

In the majority of surgeries performed by Dr. Nagler patients end up with no re-occurrence or need for additional surgeries. Dr. Nagler’s goal is to provide comfort, relief and restoration of the foot back to its intended anatomical position. Click Here, to see testimonials of satisfied patients of Dr. Nagler. (Need to add link to YouTube or to another location on website to show testimonials)

Dr. Nagler’s main concern with elderly patients is when underlying health issues become a problem. It is imperative to ensure that every patient no matter their age, is healthy enough to undergo and the surgical procedure. All patients are required to be evaluated by their physician and provide a history of any previous health issues. Your primary care physician along with Dr. Nagler can assist you in determining if you are healthy enough to have the surgery.

Many parents often inquire about their children having surgery. This often comes in the same breath as overwhelming concern. Even though children are still growing and developing, some foot problems warrant surgery despite age. These types of surgeries may include bunionectomy’s or flat foot surgery. Dr. Nagler will perform an all-encompassing evaluation to ensure that your child is a good candidate for the surgery.

Every patient is different. You have to understand your body and what your limitations are. Many patients are able to return to work with in a day or two. Of course, this is solely dependent on the requirements of your job. If you have a desk job where you sit the majority of the time, you can often return to work immediately. However, if your job requires heavy lifting, constant standing or walking then it may take you several weeks before you are ready to go back to work. Using the assistance of a walking boot will allow you to walk about 20 minutes every hour. This time will gradually increase as you start to heal. If your job requires you to stand more than 30 minutes per hour and your work cannot be modify then it is suggested that you wait until you have had the boot on for at least a week before returning to work.

As with any surgery, it depends on the patient. In most cases, it will take 8-10 weeks before a patient regains their full range of motion and shoes are comfortable to wear. However, 6-8 weeks after surgery you will still have some residual swelling that may cause some shoes to feel tight, thus resulting in some shoes not feeling comfortable. Our hope is to have all patients back to normal and wearing their shoes within 12 weeks.

The restrictions below will apply to those who have under gone bunion surgery:

• After surgery, all of our patients wear a post-op shoe. Patients are restricted for the first three days following surgery to walking no more than 15 minutes per hour.
• Patients will be switched to a walking boot three to four days after surgery. This will allow the patients to walk normally.
• Patients can participate in physical activity during the first weeks of recovery as long as it does not involve bearing great weight on the toe joint that has undergone surgery.
• One week after surgery, patients can walk or stand for 30 minutes per hour. This time will increase to 40 minutes after wearing the boot for two weeks and 50 minutes after wearing the boot for three weeks.
• Comfortable and loose shoes can be worn by the fourth week.
• Most patients can start physical activities, such as working out or using the elliptical trainer/stationary bike or swimming by the sixth week.
• Most of the swelling should be diminished by the end of the eighth week. At this time, patients can start wearing high-heeled shoes with comfort. In addition, patients should also be near their full athletic capacity and should not have any restrictions regarding physical activity.
• Patients can return to work as soon as they feel conformable. Patients need to keep in mind that they still must abide by the post-op instructions and not bear excessive weight on the joint that has undergone surgery.

A podiatrist must complete four years of podiatric medical school which is followed by residency. During residency, podiatric residents rotate through core areas of medicine such as internal medicine, infectious disease, plastic surgery, general surgery, vascular surgery, and of course podiatry surgery. During these rotations physicians and surgeons train residents in foot and ankle surgery, including both clinical and surgical situations.

After completing residency, Podiatric Surgeon can choose to become board certified by the American Board of Podiatric Surgery.

Dr. Sherman Nagler obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology at the State University of New York at Plattsburgh. He received his Doctor of Podiatric Medicine degree from the New York College of Podiatric Medicine, and received his surgical residency training at Gourveneur Hospital in New York. Dr. Nagler achieved his board certification in foot an ankle surgery with the American Board of Podiatric Surgery in 1985.

Dr. Nagler is a teaching faculty member of the St. Joseph Podiatric Surgical Residency program.

Dr. Nagler has held many positions on Hospital Committees. He is currently Section Chief of Podiatric Surgery at Tenet Park Plaza Hospital and Methodist Hospital. He has also served on the Operating Room, Credentials, Pharmacy, Therapeutics and the Oral Examinations Committee of the American Board of Podiatric Surgery in Foot and Reconstructive Foot and Ankle Surgery.

Dr. Nagler is a member of the Harris County Podiatry Society, Texas Podiatric Medical Association, American Podiatric Medical Association, and is a Fellow of the American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons.

He has made remarkable achievements in the field of foot and ankle surgery. He is a mentor of many Podiatrists in the Houston area.

There is a reason why people come from all over the world to see Dr. Nagler; it is to undergo a bunionectomy using a unique cosmetic incision. Dr. Nagler makes an incision on the inside of the foot as opposed to the top, where most surgeons make their incisions. Dr. Nagler is one of a handful of doctors in Houston that perform the incision in this manner. This will allow for very little visible scaring.