Dr. Rebecca Cerrato of The Institute for Foot & Ankle Reconstruction at Mercy Discusses New Bunion Surgery

If you've ever met someone who has had a bunion, you may have heard how painful they can become.

Many people have the same story about the surgery to correct it, and healing can be a long and painful process.

But now there's an alternative to traditional surgery.

Marissa Moss is always on her feet, and a bunion couldn't slow her down.

"I walk to work all the time. I'm often in flat shoes and comfortable shoes, and it wouldn't be until I got home, where my dad would remind me, 'Hey, you have a bunion, I have a bunion, your aunt has a bunion, it could get worse. You need to take care of that,'" Moss said.

She knew she needed to do something, too. That's why she ended up seeing Dr. Rebecca Cerrato of The Institute for Foot & Ankle Reconstruction at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore, MD. Moss' concern about a painful and long recovery went away quickly because Cerrato is one of the first surgeons to offer minimally invasive bunion surgery, an alternative to traditional surgery that can reduce post-surgical scarring, swelling and pain.

"This is really affording the ability to give patients what they're looking for without that first two weeks where they just absolutely regret that they had their surgery," Cerrato said.

Dr. Cerrato uses a specialized, needle-shaped tool that allows her to create precise bone cuts rather than an open incision.

"With certain special tools, we're able to accomplish it through these small incisions," Dr. Cerrato said.

Through several small incisions, the soft tissue is released, and that allows Dr. Cerrato to realign the big toe joint.

"We're able to obtain the results we had before, but we are able to do it in far less pain, particularly in the first six to eight weeks," Dr. Cerrato said.

Moss was shocked at how quickly she healed. She said she's really pleased she did it.

"No one wants to sit in pain, and I'm really happy that I got it done," Moss said. "I'm excited and comfortable, back in my regular shoes."

To view Mercy’s Dr. Rebecca Cerrato’s interview regarding minimally invasive bunion surgery, click here.