What is plantar fasciitis? And what is the best treatment plan for this???

Answer 1

Plantar fasciitis is the most common cause of heel pain for which professional care is sought. A variety of terms have been used to describe it including jogger's heel, tennis heel, Policeman's heel, and an outdated term, gonorrheal heel reflecting the old thought that it was somehow related to that sexually transmitted disease.

The cause of plantar fasciitis is unclear and may be multifactorial. Because of the high incidence in runners, it is best postulated to be caused by repetitive microtrauma. Possible risk factors include obesity, occupations requiring prolonged standing, heel spurs, pes planus (excessive pronation of the foot), and reduced dorsiflexion of the ankle.

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No single treatment works best for everyone with plantar fasciitis. But there are many things you can try to help your foot get better:

Give your feet a rest. Cut back on activities that make your foot hurt. Try not to walk or run on hard surfaces.
To reduce pain and swelling, try putting ice on your heel. Or take an over-the-counter pain reliever like ibuprofen (such as Advil or Motrin), naproxen (such as Aleve), or aspirin.
Do calf stretches and towel stretches several times a day, especially when you first get up in the morning.
Get a new pair of shoes. Pick shoes with good arch support and a cushioned sole. Or try heel cups or shoe inserts (orthotics). Use them in both shoes, even if only one foot hurts.
If these treatments do not help, your doctor may give you splints that you wear at night, shots of steroid medicine in your heel, or other treatments. You probably will not need surgery. Doctors only suggest it for people who still have pain after trying other treatments for 6 to 12 months.

Answer 2

The plantar is the sheath of muscle which covers the entire sole of the foot without which your foot could not support your body. It can become damaged or strained in ways that few people understand. I had the condition you describe and it showed up as extreme heal pain. I was at the point of looking for a wheel chair the pain was so bad. But I got lucky. I finally found a doctor who knew what the problem was and how to fix it. Apart from my visit to him, it cost me about 20 dollars and a few months. He told me to go to a prosthetics maker and buy heel cups to insert into my shoes. He said, accurately, that it would take a few months for the condition to disappear and that I would probably have to use the cups intermittently the rest of my life. That was at least three years ago. I used the cups for about three months and took them out of my shoes when the pain was completely gone. I have been pain free since. My advice: go to a prosthetics and buy heel cups in your size and use them.

Answer 3

Hi, I have had pf for almost a year now and i can sympathies with you now.....ive never experienced pain like this and ive had 2 kids!!! Yes first thing in the morning is very bad also after you've been sitting for a while and then try to get up...........you feel and look like someone of 90 trying to get up!! Brings me to tears most of the time. I have tried EVERYTHING to get rid of this awful condition. To start with i got sent to physio who gave me some foot exercises to do which frankly didn't do anything but cause me more pain!! They also used a scanner on my heel (the kind they use on your belly for a baby scan) they told me the scan waves would stimulate the blood circulation in my foot................after weeks of this it felt the same so they then basically gave up on me and told me all i could do was freeze a small bottle of water and roll my foot back and forth over it to ease the pain....all this did was give me cold feet!! My doc gave me noninflammatory gel to rub on (voltarol) which didn't do anything and then gave me tablets to take which again didn't do anything. I bought a night splint off the internet to wear in bed at night, this did help for the first couple of nights but was very uncomfortable to wear and then i was back to square one as the pain was back weather i wore it or not. Ive bought countless new pairs of shoes/trainers and all that's done is given me is a cupboard full of shoes!!!!! In the end i got a steroid injection directly into the pain full bit which the doc found by pressing down hard on parts of my heal until he found the worst part. The injection was VERY painfull but i was in pain anyway. It worked almost instantly! The relief was immense and i was pain free for almost a whole week, after that it gradually came back to the point of tears again. Ive had another injection which again was very painfull and this time it made little difference. It is slightly better than it was which is better than nothing i suppose. Ive been told that the last resort would be a small operation but im not keen on that at all. My doc says that it will eventually go away its just a matter of time. I know its true as it started off in both my heels and completely went from my right foot just by doing the exercises before i got out of bed. Now its just the waiting game to see when it goes from my left one. It dont matter what age you are it can strike anyone at any time!!!!! Ive also gained weight as i cant do much walking/exercises anymore.

Answer 4

It is when your arch is to high. This causes undue strain on the joints of the bones in your feet, also enomous strain on the muscle tissues connecting the ball of the foot to the heel. It can cause bone spurs to develop and it is painful to walk as the condition advances. You may notice that the bottoms of your feet hurt more in the morning when u first wake up, and then subside a little as you walk around. There are some execises you can do that will help a little like standing on a book and lifting up on your toes from a down heal position. But the best treatment is for a pediatrist to fit you for orthodics to ware in your shoes.

Answer 5

http://www.medicinenet.com/heel_spurs/article.htm

I just saw this treatment yeaterday...put your foot on your opposite knee(barefooted)grab your toes and gently pull you toes back toward your heel over the top of you foot. Do both feet for ten repetitions at least three time a day.

Answer 6

See http://www.aafp.org/afp/20010201/467.html