titanium screw has become loose after bunion and hammer toe surgery

I ahd bunion surgery om March 12th 2010 and I have not being able to walk on my foot since. I was weightbearing for 6 weeks and when back to my surgeon to have my hammer toe pin taken out and also my foot xrayed. I was discharged from the clinic and was told the only prpblem i would have was swellin for maybe 6 mnths. When i tied to walk on my foot I found it extremely painful and have been walking on my heel ever since. I finally got a appointment to go back to the clinic and was exrayed again and was told the pin was so out of place I may need to have the hardware taken out and redone again. I am extremely depressed over this . The screw is also coming through the ball of my foot and is really painful if i touch it .Could you advise me how that so soon after i was discharged that the screw became so out of place . Thanking you.

Hi,
In general terms, the screw was probably never properly placed in the first place. This can happen with "hardware"; at the time of surgery it may appear to be well placed but once there is stress placed against it, the screw may come loose.
This problem will happen to most of us who place metal hardware in an effort to stabilize a fractured bone.
Assuming the bone has properly healed, then the hardware may be removed. Although, yes, it does require another operation, this procedure should not be as involved as the original surgery.

Marc Mitnick DPM