Hallux valgus usually affects women and can be found in 23% to 28% of adults. 6,16,17 It is reported to be bilateral in 84% of cases 4 ; the majority of patients require surgical correction on both feet, which can be performed simultaneously or in stages. Contemporary fixation and modern surgical techniques render it possible to avoid using splints and crutches, making simultaneous, bilateral correction tolerable for a patient. 3 Nevertheless, there is still no consensus regarding simultaneous bilateral surgery for hallux valgus. More than 1500 publications concerning hallux valgus correction can be found in the literature; however, only a few are dedicated to the possibility of bilateral surgery, and their conclusions are rather controversial. Some authors reported that bilateral pathology should be operated in stages in order to protect the operated foot. 18 Others suggested that simultaneous hallux valgus correction may increase the risk of postoperative complications, although that was not proven in their study. 15 Several studies have indicated that bilateral surgery neither worsens functional and radiographic results 7,12 nor increases the complication rate. 8,11 Consequently, this study aimed to compare and contrast the results of bilateral and unilateral correction of hallux valgus.

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