Back Pain After Bunion Surgery

I had bunion surgery on my left foot in late June 2007. Don't remember the name of the procedure, but they broke my toe, then cut a wedge out to straighten it, then screwed the metatarsal of my big toe to the one next to it. I had about three months of recovery time before I was allowed to bear weight with that foot. Other than some grinding and pins and needles when I touch where the screws are, and minor toe/ankle pain when its cold out, I have no real complaints about the foot itself (which is a vast improvement, as I could barely walk before the surgery).

However, since I've been able to walk again, I have developed back pain from extended periods on my feet. If I spend about three or more hours on my feet, I get some pretty major throbbing lower back pain that lasts for several days. I have never had lower back pain in my life until after my bunion surgery.

Also, since the surgery, my left ankle has always felt much weaker and stiff. I always just chalked it up to three years favoring my left foot, followed by three months of not being able to use it at all. It's not really troubling, and I only mention it because it might be relevant to my back pain.

What about the foot surgery caused this new back pain? Who should I talk to regarding this back pain? My orthopedic surgeon? My primary care physician? A back specialist?

Thanks for your time!

I forgot to mention that I also had hammertoe in my 4th toe as well and the surgeon took care of that on the same day of the main procedure for my bunion. I don't know if it's relevant, so I figured I'd mention it.

[FootDoc]

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In my view, the logical and appropriate course of action would be to see a doctor (orthopedist or neurosurgeon) who deals with the diagnosis and treatment of back problems for an evaluation as to the nature of your back pain, who can then can offer an opinion as to whether it is related to or complicated by a foot problem or is something unrelated to the feet, and then you can proceed from there.