Deformities of the great toe in Apert's syndrome

Complex syndactyly of the hands and feet is a major deformity seen in children with Apert's syndrome. Also observed in the three patients presented in this paper was severe hallux valgus, which caused significant shoeing difficulties in two patients, for whom surgical correction was necessary. The two operative plans were based on the different underlying osseous abnormalities: (1) removal of the great toe with transposition of the second toe; (2) resection of the second ray with realignment of the great toe. Both procedures were successful from a functional and aesthetic viewpoint. When confronted with a child with Apert's syndrome who is having shoeing difficulty, assessment of the underlying osseous pathology is a mandatory step in the preoperative planning of surgical intervention.