Plantar Fasciitis is a rather common condition of the foot causing significant heel pain and proximal foot arch pain. The most common presentation of plantar fasciitis is when a patient experiences pain with their first step in the morning. This initial step incurs the most pain that the patient will feel throughout the day, but there will be continual pain in those who suffer from plantar fasciitis. Typically people describe the pain as relating to the sensation of walking on glass. These initial steps incur tremendous pain near the proximal aspect of their foot where the plantar fascia inserts into the heel bone.
Normally, the plantar fascia acts as an anchor for the foot arch. While this is the role it naturally plays, simply acting as the anchor subjects the plantar fascia to significant strain over the course of a day. This strain is most significant when people aren't wearing proper support in their shoes.
Commonly, those who suffer from plantar fasciitis will come in for help after the pain has been present for around three months. Frequently, physicians recommend some stretching and some ice and some non-steroidal anti-inflamatories.
Frankly, these regimens have not been shown to be particularly useful in studies. Certainly for a few people with a minor condition such a minor treatment will help; particularly the icing aspect. And don't get me wrong, it is a great idea to keep muscles stretched for those who are looking to stay healthy in their general lifestyle, but it is not usually an effective treatment for such a serious condition. Even the drugs that are commonly prescribed have been shown to be of little help in this condition.
Effective treatment consists of an introduction of the arch support, whose absence contributed to the condition in the first place. This can take the form of over the counter arch supports, no special supports are necessarily required for plantar fasciitis. As one can assume without seeing the commercials, there are numerous reasonable arch supports on the market.
Dr. Scholls has a good product heel pain relief orthodics that are reasonable. There are a few others that are available, and certainly if you go to your local drug store, youll find some non-Dr. Scholls products that may beat the price. Most of the good products will run about 2/3 the length of the foot. Theyll have a degree of firmness to them, and they will have some obvious arch support. Introducing arch support is likely to be helpful in easing the pain of plantar fasciitis and even healing the condition when used in conjunction with other therapies.
Another therapy that can help patients who's conditions aren't taken care of with a simple arch support device, the night splints can be effective. One thing to understand about plantar fasciitis pain is it becomes a recurrent problem and really becomes a little bit of a vicious cycle. The cycle occurs during the day.
Someone will cause wear and tear on their plantar fascia at the insertion on the heal bone, and at night this strain is relieved when they lie horizontally and allow their feet to go limp. From this orientation, their foot and leg are in a position totally different from the one found through much of the day. This relaxed position causes the plantar fascia to become similar to a relaxed rubber band. The reason the first step hurts so much more than the rest throughout the day is that the healing thats been going on over night to try to rebuild bridges where there has been micro tears, are all ripped out with those first few steps as the rubber band that was healed in a lax position becomes stretched. With all of the healing that occurs during sleep being destroyed every morning, the restorative nature of sleep is no longer found in the heel, and the pain continues.
The night splint addresses this issue by maintaining the L shape of the foot over the course of the night. There are numerous pictures of this on the internet. Frankly there are products over the internet that would address this. They can be given through a doctors office with a prescription and theres quite a markup on these non-custom fitted braces when they are obtained in the traditional way through medical insurance, etc.
In summary, when your heel starts hurting and it hurts with the first step in the morning, immediately start icing at night and get yourself an over the counter foot orthodic. It provides significant arch support described above. If this doesnt work, then I would consider talking to your doctor and possibly adding the night splint. If these fall short, then you may need a steroid injection to sort of get you over the hump and start this healing process.
Michael Carroll, MD is a board certified family physician with a special interest in sports medicine. He is the founding partner of Creekside Clinic, LLC, a progressive primary care center in Traverse City, Michigan and a member of both the American College of Sports Medicine, and the American Academy of Family Physicians. He also has an interest in shoulder pain and rotator cuff injuries, specifically with regards to rotator cuff tendonitis Dr. Carroll is the author of Shoulder Pain Talk, a forum dedicated to educating those who suffer from shoulder pain about common treatment options and the condition that afflicts millions of Americans.
Fallbrook Siding
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