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INJURY TITLE
| Plantar Fasciitis |
INJURY OVERVIEW
| A very common overuse injury to the connective tissue on the sole of the foot, in particular where it attaches to the heel bone. Very common in runners and dancers. The pain does not normally result from an injury in particular but rather gradually increases as the tissue becomes inflamed and thickened. |
INJURY IN-DEPTH INFORMATION
| Over pronation (flattening of the foot) whilst walking or running is frequently associated with this pain as it is this action (in weight bearing) which places the tissue under most stress. There is often a previous history of injury on the affected leg but this is not always the case Tight calf muscles can reduce the normal movement of the foot when walking or running and place the plantar fascia under strain, thus aggravating the pain. |
COMMON SIGNS & SYMPTOMS
| Pain on first few steps of the day (this is because, as you sleep and are lying down, the tissue starts to try and heal itself. This is a continuous process and standing on it can irritate the healing tissue initially).
Pain on palpation of the inside and front of the heel on the sole of the foot. |
HOW IS IT ASSESSED
| As above.
An XRay is sometimes used by some doctors, but the correlation between this type of pain and what is found on the XRay is very low. Indeed the symptoms have been reported to improve when the XRay findings worsen. |
GENERAL TREATMENT
| Avoidance of the aggravating factors
Use of a heel cup or an orthotic (biomechanical intervention) Acupuncture Taping to offload the plantar fascia In severe cases a night splint can be used. Corticosteroid injection can be very useful in calming the symptoms in advanced cases. Surgery is sometimes used for advanced cases that remain symptomatic. |
| Exercise Videos: i.e.
Rotator cuff strengthening Pec stretch Etc |
WHICH HEALTH PROFESSIONAL TO CONSULT
| PHYSIO X | MEDIC | PODIATRY X |