‘Better Than Normal’ After Foot Fusion Surgery

Marene Burke had places to go, walks to take and grandkids to watch. But she couldn’t do it.

“I had such severe pain in my foot,” says the 72-year-old Scranton woman. She had been putting up with it for years, and recently, her pain injections had stopped working.

“I thought,” she says, “I just can’t go on like this.”

Now, thanks to a foot fusion operation at Lehigh Valley Orthopedic Institute, part of Jefferson Health, her pain is nearly gone and she’s back to taking walks, visiting friends and taking granddaughter Callie, 6, to the park after school.

“Marene had a significant flatfoot deformity, which can lead to progressive arthritis, chronic pain and difficulty with everyday activities,” says Shawn Bifano, MD, a foot and ankle surgeon who sees patients at Lehigh Valley Health Network locations in northeastern Pennsylvania.

“Non-surgical options were no longer effective for her,” Dr. Bifano says, “and a fusion procedure was the best way to relieve pain and restore stability to her foot.”

During surgery at LVH–Dickson City, Dr. Bifano and his team realigned her foot, removed damaged cartilage from several joints and used screws and staples to hold the bones in the corrected position so they could heal together into one solid, stable structure.

“I couldn’t put any weight at all on it after the surgery for the first six weeks,” Marene says. “I spent a lot of time on the recliner, and I had a walker but I had to hop on my other foot to go anywhere.”

By week 12, she was able to begin therapy. Her first appointment was at Rehabilitation Services–Dickson City, just a few days before that facility was destroyed by a fire.

“I figured I would have to switch to another therapy provider,” Marene says, “but within two weeks they had pulled together a new therapy center at a location in Dunmore,” she says. “I don’t know how they did it so fast, but I hardly missed a beat.”

Marene, a former 8th grade reading teacher in the Scranton School District, was surprised to find out that her therapist was one of her former students, Joshua Brennan, DPT.

“To have a successful rehab like Marene’s, it is important to have positive attitude, work hard while at your therapy appointment and most importantly, do the home exercises as well,” says Brennan.

“For the right patient, foot fusion can help restore stability and reduce pain, allowing them to return to a more active and fulfilling lifestyle,” Dr. Bifano says. The procedure eliminates pain by eliminating painful motion in damaged joints of the foot.

“For many patients,” he says, “this means walking more comfortably, improving mobility and getting back to the things they enjoy.”

Dr. Bifano says Lehigh Valley Orthopedic Institute is the only orthopedic institute in Lackawanna, Luzerne and many surrounding counties offering orthopedic fellowship-trained expertise in foot and ankle surgery.

“Dr. Bifano and everyone at Lehigh Valley Hospital were great,” Marene says. “I’d recommend them to anyone.”

“After just eight months, I was about 90 percent back to normal,” she says. “Actually, when I think about it, I’m even better than normal, considering I have no more pain.”

Marene is back to “walking everywhere,” she says, and no longer has any trouble climbing stairs. She watches one grandchild every day after school and is making plans to visit the other two, who live in Maryland.

Looking back, she says, “I don’t know why I waited so long to get this fixed.” 

She also recalls her first desire as soon as she was back on both feet. “I thought,” she says, “I really need a pedicure.”