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Minimally Invasive Bunion Surgery in Brighton, Worthing & Chichester

If you have a painful bump at the base of your big toe, struggle to fit into shoes, or notice your toe crossing over others, you may have a bunion. At Sussex Foot & Ankle Clinic, I, Mr Adam Ajis (MBBS, FRCS Tr&Orth) specialises in both minimally invasive and open bunion surgery as a consultant orthopaedic surgeon.

I am Mr Adam Ajis (MBBS, FRCS Tr&Orth), a consultant orthopaedic surgeon. I have helped hundreds of patients across East and West Sussex regain mobility. In 2026, I will continue to offer private consultations and surgery at Nuffield Health Brighton Hospital and Goring Hall Hospital, Worthing.
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Bunion Surgery

Are you fed up with shape of your foot, or only being able to fit your feet into ugly shoes? Do you have a painful bump on the side of the base of your big toe, or are you worried that your big toe is now in danger of crossing over the other toes?

 

Does the angle of your big toe cause rubbing or sores? If so, you may have a bunion. I understand how frustrating this can be for you, and as a bunion surgeon, I’ve helped hundreds of patients just like yourself.

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What is a Bunion?

A bunion is a painful area on the side of the base of a toe – usually the big toe, although it can also affect the little toe. The toe becomes angled so that instead of pointing straight ahead, it begins to point inwards. This can become a problem because the bunion can rub against the side of your shoe, or the big toe itself can rub against other toes.

If left untreated, the shifting big toe can cause secondary issues such as hammer toe, plantar plate injury, or even talonavicular joint pain due to changes in how you walk. As a specialist bunion surgeon in Sussex, I have refined my technique for minimally invasive bunion surgery to ensure smaller scars and faster recovery for my Brighton patients.
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What Are the Risks of Bunion Surgery?

Every kind of surgery brings with it a small amount of risk, although thankfully the vast majority of my patients do very well after surgery. The risks include possible infection, damage to nerves, the bones fracturing, moving out of alignment or not healing, and stiffness of the big toe.

Very rarely the bunion can come back, and this can happen in up to 1 in 10 people, but it’s more likely if you have surgery when you are very young e.g. under 18 or have an underlying condition such as joint hypermobility. If this happens, revision bunion surgery is successful.

Truth is, we’re not entirely sure, but there may be a genetic component to it (do your feet look like your Mum’s feet?), or it may have been contributed to the shoes you wore when you were younger. Some people believe that wearing narrow or pointy shoes can generate bunions.


Bunions are really common – around one in three of us will develop a bunion, and they are also more common in women. If you’re a diabetic, and you have a bunion, you may be more at risk of an ulcer forming where rubbing occurs.

Most people complain about the big toe becoming misshapen- it turns inwards towards the little toe. You may feel embarrassed to show your feet publically.


Many people will complain of pain and redness around the base of the big toe, or a bony lump.

 

Sometimes there will be rubbing or sores where the big toe touches the other toes, or you may get a callus (hard skin) building up around the side of the toe.

 

The shifting over of the big toe may also crowd the second toe and cause it to hammer up, which can create rubbing on the top of the joint of the second toe.

 

Very occasionally, the big toe becomes so bent over that it starts to cross over the other toes.

When we meet, I’ll be asking you many questions about how your foot feels, and how it is causing you problems; for instance, it is making walking painful, or what kinds of shoes are you now having to wear?


I’ll be examining you to see how you’re walking, how the toes move, and looking at their alignment, and whether any soft tissue irritation is now happening.

 

It is always necessary to do some X-rays, whilst you’re standing with the weight through your feet, as this will tell me about the angles of the toe deformities when your foot is loaded.

Some people have a bunion in the foot that doesn’t cause them any bother at all, but you may be experiencing pain or are simply fed up of the shape.


In the first instance, many people try to cope with wearing broader shoes (that have more space for the toes at the front of the shoe – called the toe box). Sometimes, seeing a podiatrist or wearing silicone toe separators can help.

 

Once you have a bunion, it’s likely to slowly worsen over time; in other words, it won’t correct itself.

Having misshapen feet is not something you have to live with for the rest of your life. Having beautiful feet is not something reserved just for celebrities. Everyone can benefit from deformity correction as when the underlying structure of the foot is improved, so is the function of the foot.


This translates into less pain during day to day activities, the ability to wear any shoes you want to, and feet that look more normal.

Bunion surgery can be performed either through an incision (known as an open procedure), or via a much shorter incisions (which is known as minimally invasive surgery). Every patient is different, and not everyone is best served by minimally invasive surgery. Together we’ll talk through your preferences, and which option I believe makes the best sense, clinically.

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Minimally Invasive Bunion Surgery.

If you have a mild bunion, a minimally invasive procedure may be a good option for you. The advantage is that the incisions I need to make are much smaller than a traditional, longer, open incision.

Using X-ray to guide me, I make careful cuts in the metatarsal bone (which is called a ‘chevron osteotomy’) and I realign the bone to correct the deformity.

The new positioning is held in place with very small screws that are buried into the bone, so that you’ll be unable to feel them after the operation. It’s carried out under a light general anaesthetic, and it’s a day case procedure, which means you get to go home later that day.

I have extensive experience with this particular operation, and the end result is a nicely shaped foot with minimal scarring.
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Open Bunion Surgery.

Sometimes, the bunion is quite severe, and minimally invasive surgery might not be as successful, in which case, I’m likely to recommend an operation with a bigger incision, known as an open procedure or a ‘scarf osteotomy’. This operation is again performed under a light general anaesthetic, I carefully make a ‘Z’ shaped cut in the big toe bones, trim the side of the joint, and realign the bones, fixing them in place with small screws.

Sometimes I will correct tightened soft tissues or hammering of an adjacent toe too. A very powerful correction can be achieved using this technique and it is still the gold standard in the UK for bunion correction.

What is the Recovery Like After Bunion Surgery?

To make sure you are comfortable after the surgery, I carry out some nerve blocks during the operation, which means your foot will be numb for several hours. Your foot will be covered by a dressing, and you’ll leave the hospital wearing a surgical shoe.

It’s important to look after the surgical work that has been done, and so I’d like you to remember the following:

1 Post-Operative Care & Maintenance

2 Advice & Mobility During the First 6 Weeks

3 Two-Week Review

4 Physiotherapy

5 Returning to Your Desk Job

6 Introducing Yourself Back to Driving

1

When you leave hospital, I want you to leave the dressing on, keeping it dry, until we meet again, two weeks later. You may find showering easier by covering it with a protective sleeve www.limboproducts.co.uk

Try to minimise your walking as much as possible for six weeks, and elevate it whenever you are sat, to help reduce swelling. If you need to mobile then using two crutches, so that you can totally take the weight off your foot, will help you to get about. It’s important to say that the patients who do best after the surgery, are those who rest the foot as much as they can in the early stages. ‘Toes above the nose’ where possible.
At two weeks, you and I will meet again, and I’ll remove the dressings, and check the incision site has healed. Sutures will be removed, and you can wash the foot now.
After six weeks, you can begin some physiotherapy to get your foot moving properly, and to strengthen the muscles. At this stage you can wear your normal shoes and begin to use your foot for everyday activities but running and impact work needs to wait until the three-month stage. If you do too much too early, you may risk the bones fracturing or moving out of place, before they have properly healed.
Most people will be able to return to a desk job after two weeks, but if you have high demand on your feet (e.g. if you’re a construction worker), then it may be about 8 weeks that you’ll need to take off work.
When it comes to driving, if you have an automatic car, and the surgery is on your left foot, you can drive from around two weeks. If you’re driving a manual car, or if the surgery is on your right foot, then it’s best to wait until you are able to wear normal shoes. Make sure you can do an emergency stop before you pull away.

Why Choose Sussex Foot & Ankle Clinic?

  • Consultant-led care by Mr Adam Ajis, MBBS, FRCS (Tr&Orth)
  • Fellowship-trained orthopaedic surgeon specialising in bunion correction
  • Registered with the General Medical Council (GMC)
  • Member of the British Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society (BOFAS) and British Orthopaedic Association (BOA)
  • Convenient clinics at Nuffield Health Brighton Hospital and Goring Hall Hospital, Worthing
  • Trusted by patients across Sussex for expert, patient-centred care
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Adam Ajis Web 5

Expert Foot & Ankle Care Across East & West Sussex

My clinics are strategically located to serve patients looking for a bunion surgeon near me in the following areas:

  • Brighton & Hove: Practising at Nuffield Health Brighton.
  • Worthing & Littlehampton: Practising at Goring Hall Hospital.
  • Wider Sussex: I regularly see patients from Chichester, Eastbourne, and Horsham seeking specialist care for ankle instability, ankle fractures, and ankle replacement surgery.
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Our Clinics

I regularly work from two locations across Sussex and appointments are available at each.

CLINICS
Adam Ajis Web 47

Goring Hall Hospital

Bodiam Avenue Goring-By-Sea West Sussex BN12 5AT
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Adam Ajis Web 50

Nuffield Brighton

Brighton Nuffield Hospital Warren Road, Brighton BN2 6DX
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Comprehensive Foot & Ankle Specialist

While I am a specialist bunion surgeon, my expertise at the Sussex Foot and Ankle Clinic extends to complex reconstructions and sports injuries, including:
  • Ligament Repairs: Treatment for deltoid ligament tears and chronic ankle instability.
  • Arthritis Management: Surgical and non-surgical care for subtalar joint arthritis, calcaneocuboid arthritis, and navicular arthritis.
  • Fracture Care: Urgent and elective ankle fracture surgery and treatment for Jones fractures.
FAQS

FAQs About
Bunion Surgery

No. Nerve blocks during surgery keep the foot comfortable for several hours, and modern pain relief means recovery is much easier than many expect.

Yes, though recurrence is uncommon. It is more likely in very young patients or those with hypermobile joints.

Most patients need 2–4 weeks off for office work and longer for manual jobs. Driving usually resumes at 6 weeks.

Not always, but exercises to restore flexibility and strength are often recommended.

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