Late last week, Tiger Woods took to Twitter to announce that he underwent a successful subtalar fusion procedure to correct lingering issues stemming from a car crash in February of 2021.
According to the statement, the subtalar fusion procedure was necessary because Woods was dealing with post-traumatic arthritis as a result of the single-vehicle car crash he was involved in just over two years ago. The operation was performed by Dr. Martin O’Malley at HSS Sports Medicine Institute in New York City and was deemed a success. There is no official timetable for his return to professional golf, but it’s certainly possible that he could be back on the course before the end of the year.
We expected that foot surgery was in the cards for Tiger Woods, but it’s a little surprising to learn that he underwent a subtalar fusion. Following his withdrawal from The Masters after making the cut, Woods cited a recurrent plantar fasciitis issue as the reason for his early departure. While he may still be dealing with pain from his plantar fasciitis, it’s possible that the wincing and hobbling we saw at The Masters was actually due to arthritic pain stemming from that early automobile accident.
The Subtalar Fusion Procedure And Recovery
During a subtalar fusion, the surgeon will make a small incision on the outer side of the foot. This allows access to the joint and its surfaces. Damaged cartilage is removed, and then the surgeon roughens the bone surfaces to stimulate bleeding. This helps the bones to heal together once surgical hardware are inserted to hold the bones in a fixed location. In some instances, a bone graft is added to ensure enough bone fusion takes place. X-rays taken during the procedure confirm that the bones and hardware are properly aligned.
In a typical subtalar fusion, the foot will be placed in a cast following surgery. After 10-14 days, the cast will be removed and the patient will be placed in a fracture boot, but they’ll still need to use assistive walking devices to get around. Patients aren’t given the green light to walk on the boot until after the fusion has adequately healed, which is usually around the 8-12 week mark.
You can gradually ease back into weight bearing movements and even exercise once you’ve been given clearance after the 8-12 week mark. Most patients will begin physical therapy around this time as well. Your foot will be stiffer and have less range of motion following surgery, but there will also be a lot less pain, which will make activities much more enjoyable. Full recovery typically takes 9-12 months, but you can return to full activities well before this point.
For Woods, this means that it’s certainly possible that he could return for some events near the end of the year, but as he has been doing recently, he’ll likely take things slow and make sure he is as healthy as possible heading into the early part of next year so that he can be ready for The Masters and other major tournaments. He may notice some discomfort when he has to hit golf shots from odd slopes or from less-than-ideal terrain, but he also won’t have nearly as much pain. That should make it much easier for him to hit shots and complete full tournaments.
We’ll keep tabs on his progress as he recovers. In the meantime, if you need help with a foot or ankle issue, reach out to the team at Silverman Ankle & Foot today at (952) 224-8500.
