Müller-Weiss syndrome, a disease that further afflicts Spanish tennis champion Rafael Nadal, is a rare condition that affects the bones in the foot, which can cause chronic pain.
Mallorcan has suffered since he was 18 from osteonecrosis of the navicular bone -or tarsal scaphoid -, also called Müller -Weiss syndrome. A degenerative disease chronic and incurablehe said in early May.
This syndrome affects the navicular bone, located at the back of the foot, between the talus (formerly called the astragalus) and the cuneiform bones.
This bone undergoes significant stress and, for unknown reasons, loses its vascularization and becomes necrotic.explanation to AFP Denis Mainard, president of the French Association of foot surgery and head of the orthopedic surgery department at Nancy hospital in eastern France.
In the most serious cases and in subjects who put a lot of strain on their feet, the bone will break, flatten, it may break and, eventually, it may evolve into osteoarthritis with contraction of the plantar archhe says.
A sequel to another disease?
Müller-Weiss syndrome can affect only one foot but more often both. Rafael Nadal suffers only one foot, the left. This pathology more often affects women, and people between 40 and 60 years of age.
Professor Mainard did not know the Spanish player’s file. But he rises the intellectual hypothesis that he, son, can be reached by Köhler-Mouchet disease, a rare pathology of navicular bone growth that affects less than 10 years, especially sports boys, and can leave after-effects.
Müller-Weiss syndrome has five stages: the first is asymptomatic, the latter osteoarthritis. The causes of this disease remain unknown.
Of the two authors who first described it, Müller thought it was more of a traumatic origin, Weiss was more of a vascular. So far, we consider that the origin is rather vascularsaid Professor Mainard.
Certain factors can increase the risk of its occurrence (overweight, flat feet, stress fracture, etc.). This disease is often difficult to diagnose in the beginning, as it progresses quietly in the early stages. The disease usually appears later.
In addition to rest, orthopedic insoles can reduce mechanical stress. Faced with pain, anti-inflammatory treatments and infiltrations complete the therapeutic panoply.
” I live with a ton of anti-inflammatories every day to give me a chance to train (…) If I don’t take it, I’m limp. And my problem, for a long time now, is that many days I live in extreme pain. “
For patients whose pain is no longer relieved and unable to walk, surgery may be prescribed. It blocks both joints involving the navicular bone.
In cases where the navicular bone is damaged, a bone graft is also needed to restore the length of the inner arch of the foot.said Professor Mainard.
Training the sport at a high level after such an operation seems difficulthe judged.
Source: Radio-Canada
