Plantar Fasciitis Research Paper

Plantar Fascia is a thick band of fibrous connective tissue located at the plantar aspect of the foot. The Plantar Fascia is connected to the calcaneal tuberosity, to the each metatarsal and periosteum of the proximal phalanges. It is divided into three parts: the medial, the lateral, and the central components. Plantar fasciitis is a heel pain that occurs on weight bearing usually after a period of time of inactivity. The ache is felt at the poster medially at the insertion of the plantar fascia with deep pressure. Plantar fasciitis is mainly a clinical diagnosis principally made on history and examination alone. It’s a self limited condition which mostly resolves with non-operative management but can take up to 12 to 18 months before it

When extending the great toe there may be pain along the plantar fascia (stretch test) indicate plantar fasciitis (Riddle, 2003). There are a number of presumable diagnoses that need to be understood in order to determine the cause of the heel pain. Such as, Arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis and Reiter’s syndrome can cause heel pain. Calcaneal stress fracture is usually associated with prolong or significant activities. Fat pad syndrome is pain in the center of the heel and associated with barefoot activity. Tarsal tunnel syndrome presents a history of pain and parenthesis to the medial aspect of the heel and is due to the compression of the posterior tibia nerve under the lancinate ligament in the medial aspect of the ankle. Bursitis causes symptoms similar to plantar fasciitis. Posterior calcaneal bursitis gives pain in the posterior superior aspect of the heel. Calcaneal osteomyelitis is throbbing pain, night pain and diagnosed on blood test, radiographs or MRI. Tumor may cause heel pain, but they are rare and associated with night pain. Also structural risk factors include pes planus, over pronation, pes cavus, excessive lateral tibia torsion, leg-length discrepancy, and excessive femoral anteversion can cause Plantar fasciitis, Differentiating the different diagnosis in heel pain can be very

The initial goal is to reduce the surrounding inflammation, applying ice is very important to reduce inflammation. Foot orthotics can reduce the strain in the plantar fascia during static loading, minimize the collapse of the medial longitudinal arch, and reduce pronation. The usage of orthotics and heel pads is to achieve maximum comfort and proper alignment of the foot. A night splint keeps the patients ankle in a neutral position overnight, while passively stretching the calf and plantar fascia during sleep. This may allow the plantar fascia to heal. A corticosteroid injection may be use if conservative treatments fail. Steroid injections can be repeated, but patient should be warned of complications such as plantar fascia rupture (Porter and Shadbolt, 2005). Physical therapy treatments such as ultrasound therapy, and laser therapy are used in treating and heeling plantar fascia. A combination of non- operative treatment modalities may have up to 90 per cent success rate in treating plantar fasciitis with a year (Singh, 1997 and Davis,