Plantar Fasciitis – Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment

Plantar fasciitis is a very common cause of inferior heel pain that can be triggered and aggravated by prolonged standing, walking, running, and obesity, among other factors. It is the result of degenerative irritation of the plantar fascia origin at the medial calcaneal tuberosity of the heel as well as the surrounding perifascial structures.[rx][rx][rx] Treatments are largely noninvasive and efficacious. Supportive treatments, including the plantar fascia-specific stretch, calf stretching, appropriate orthotics, and night dorsiflexion splinting, can alleviate plantar fascia pain. While local injections of corticosteroids can help with pain relief, the effects are short-lived and must be weighed against the risk of fat pad atrophy and plantar fascia rupture.

Plantar fasciitis is a disorder that results in pain in the heel and bottom of the foot. The pain is usually most severe with the first steps of the day or following a period of rest. Pain is also frequently brought on by bending the foot and toes up towards the shin and may be worsened by a tight Achilles tendon. The condition typically comes on slowly. In about a third of people, both legs are affected.

A fascia is a band or sheet of connective tissue, primarily collagen, beneath the skin that attaches, stabilizes, encloses, and separates muscles and other internal organs.^[rx] Fascia is classified by layer, as superficial fascia, deep fascia, and visceral or parietal fascia, or by its function and anatomical location. Like ligaments, aponeuroses, and tendons, fascia is made up of fibrous connective tissue containing closely packed bundles of collagen fibers oriented in a wavy pattern parallel to the direction of pull. Fascia

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Causes of Plantar Fasciitis

The main cause of heel pain is overstretching of the plantar fascia ligament under the foot. So why is the ligament being overstretched? There are different factors

• Over-use – too many sports, running, walking or standing for long periods (e.g. because of your job)
• Weight gain –  our feet are designed to carry a ‘normal’ weight. Any excess weight places great pressure on the bones, nerves, muscles, and ligaments in the feet, which sooner or later will have consequences. Even pregnancy (in the last 10 weeks) can cause foot problems!
• Age – as we get older ligaments become tighter & shorter and muscles become weaker; the ideal circumstances for foot problems
• Unsupportive footwear –  ‘floppy’ shoes with no support as well as thongs affect our walking pattern
• Walking barefoot –  especially on hard surfaces like concrete or tiles
• Low arch/flat feet or over-pronation
• Standing on your feet for several hours each day.
• Medical conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis or lupus (systemic lupus erythematosus)
• Wearing high-heeled shoes, and switching abruptly to flat shoes.
• Wearing shoes that are worn out with weak arch supports and thin soles.
• Having flat feet or an unusually high arch.
• Having legs of uneven lengths or an abnormal walk or foot position.
• Having tight Achilles tendons, or ‘heel cords’.

An important contributing factor to Plantar Fasciitis is ‘excess pronation’ (or over-pronation). This is a condition whereby the feet roll over, the arches collapse and the foot elongates. This unnatural elongation puts excess strain on the ligaments, muscles, and nerves in the foot.

When the foot is not properly aligned, the bones unlock and cause the foot to roll inward. With every step taken your foot pronates and elongates, stretching the plantar fascia and causing inflammation and pain at the attachment of the plantar fascia into the heel bone. Re-alignment of the foot should, therefore, an important part of the treatment regime.

Risk factors of Plantar Fasciitis

Though plantar fasciitis can arise without an obvious cause, factors that can increase your risk of developing plantar fasciitis include:

• Age – Plantar fasciitis is most common between the ages of 40 and 60.
• Certain types of exercise – Activities that place a lot of stress on your heel and attached tissue — such as long-distance running, ballistic jumping activities, ballet dancing, and aerobic dance — can contribute to an earlier onset of plantar fasciitis.
• Foot mechanics – Being flat-footed, having a high arch or even having an abnormal pattern of walking can affect the way weight is distributed when you’re standing and put added stress on the plantar fascia.
• Obesity – Excess pounds put extra stress on your plantar fascia.
• Occupations that keep you on your feet – Factory workers, teachers and others who spend most of their work hours walking or standing on hard surfaces can damage their plantar fascia.

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Symptoms of Plantar Fasciitis

Pain is usually felt on the underside of the heel and is often most intense with the first steps of the day or after rest.  It is commonly associated with long periods of weight-bearing or sudden changes in weight-bearing or activity.

You may experience

• Sharp pain in the inside part of the bottom of the heel, which may feel like a knife sticking into the bottom of the foot.
• Heel pain tends to be worse with the first few steps after awakening, when climbing stairs or when standing on tiptoe.
• Heel pain after long periods of standing or after getting up from a seated position.
• Heel pain after, but not usually during, exercise.
• Mild swelling in the heel.

Treatment of Plantar Fasciitis

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Nonsurgical Treatment

More than 90% of patients with plantar fasciitis will improve within 10 months of starting simple treatment methods.

• Activity Modification – Modification of activities should be advised, while those that involve repetitive impact, such as running (even on a treadmill), should be avoided during the treatment phase. Patients can continue performing non-weight-bearing activities such as cycling, swimming, and rowing to maintain their cardiovascular fitness while minimizing cyclic loading. A gradual return to activity may be allowed after the patient is asymptomatic for 4–6 weeks and no longer has localized tenderness over the plantar fascia.
• Rest – Decreasing or even stopping the activities that make the pain worse is the first step in reducing the pain. You may need to stop athletic activities where your feet pound on hard surfaces (for example, running or step aerobics). The body is capable of healing itself and can overcome inflammation, provided you give it some rest. Avoid any running, sports, walking distances, walking up or down hills and standing for prolonged periods for at least 6 weeks. Completely avoid any barefoot walking on hard tiles and floors, especially first thing in the morning.
• Ice – Rolling your foot over a cold water bottle or ice for 20 minutes is effective. This can be done 3 to 4 times a day.
• Exercise – Plantar fasciitis is aggravated by tight muscles in your feet and calves. Stretching your calves and plantar fascia is the most effective way to relieve the pain that comes with this condition. Exercise must be done by the following system.

Phase 1 exercises

• No running – walking or any other activity which causes pain either during, after or the following day.
• Night splint – wear a plantar fasciitis night splint for as long as is comfortable, overnight if possible but if you can manage 1 hour then gradually increase over time. If it is painful then remove it. Do not give up!
• Maintain fitness – by swimming or cycling and use the opportunity to work on upper body strength.
• Gentle stretching – if pain allows. Stretching the plantar fascia is essential but in addition, all the muscles of the lower leg should be stretched – including the calf muscles and the tibialis anterior at the front of the leg. Continue stretching daily throughout the rehabilitation phase and long after the injury has healed.

You are ready to move onto phase two when you can walk pain-free in the mornings.

Phase 2 treatment

The second phase of plantar fasciitis treatment aims to get the athlete back to full fitness once initial pain and inflammation has gone.

• Ice – Continue with ice after activity such as walking.
• Massage – massage techniques can be applied to further stretch and improve the elasticity of the plantar fascia. Initially, massage may be light on a daily basis but deeper techniques can be used as the condition improves. Deeper techniques may require a days recovery in between sessions.
• Ball rolling – If you are unable to see a massage therapist regularly then roll the foot over a ball or rolling pin or similar to help stretch and apply myofascial release. Do this exercise for 10 minutes per day.

Continue with this until foot fitness has been regained. If the pain becomes worse then drop back to phase 1.

Plantar Fascia Stretch

• This stretch is performed in the seated position. Cross your affected foot over the knee of your other leg. Grasp the toes of your painful foot and slowly pull them toward you in a controlled fashion. If it is difficult to reach your foot, wrap a towel around your big toe to help pull your toes toward you. Place your other hand along the plantar fascia. The fascia should feel like a tight band along the bottom of your foot when stretched. Hold the stretch for 10 seconds. Repeat it 20 times for each foot. This exercise is best done in the morning before standing or walking.

Ice and Anti-Inflammatories

• Two or three times a day, apply an ice pack directly onto the heel and hold it for 5 to 10 minutes. This will help cool down the inflammation and provide temporary pain relief. Anti-inflammatory medications like Ibuprofen (found in Nurofen™ and Advil™) will help decrease the inflammation of the plantar fascia. Rapid™ is another nicely potent anti-inflammatory drug and can be helpful for temporary pain relief.

Night Splints

• Most people sleep with their feet pointed down. This relaxes the plantar fascia and is one of the reasons for morning heel pain. A night splint stretches the plantar fascia while you sleep. Although it can be difficult to sleep with, a night splint is very effective and does not have to be used once the pain is gone.
• The use of night dorsiflexion splints can also help with plantar fasciitis, especially pain that is worse during the first few steps in the morning. Night splints have produced highly positive outcomes such as the resolution of symptoms within 12 weeks of use. The patient may see improvement as early as after four weeks of use. (rx)

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• Orthotics are corrective foot devices. They are not the same as soft, spongy, rubber footbeds, gel heel cups etc. Gel and rubber footbeds may cushion the heels and feet, but they do not provide any biomechanical correction. In fact, the gel can do the opposite and make an incorrect walking pattern even more unstable!
• Orthotic insoles work by supporting the arches while re-aligning the ankles and lower legs. Most people’s arches look quite normal when sitting or even standing. However, when putting weight on the foot the arches lower, placing added tension on the plantar fascia, leading to inflammation at the heel bone. Orthotics support the arches, which reduces the tension and overwork of the plantar fascia, allowing the inflamed tissue to heal.
• Orthotics needn’t be expensive, custom-made devices. A comprehensive Heel Pain study by the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society found that by wearing standard orthotics and doing a number of daily exercises, 95% of patients experienced substantial, lasting relief from their heel pain symptoms.

Plantar Fasciitis Medical Treatments

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Cortisone-Steroid Injections

• Cortisone is a powerful anti-inflammatory and when injected directly into the heel it will work almost immediately. Bear in mind, however, that the treatment does not address the root cause of the inflammation, and needs to be repeated every few months. Also note, these injections are quite painful, and most doctors today will consider other, less invasive treatment options first.

Acupuncture

• Electroacupuncture and standard acupuncture are used in the treatment of plantar fasciitis and other foot problems such as neuromas and nerve impingement, numbness in the toes, etc. In some cases, there is nerve entrapment within the foot combined with referred pain from other areas of the body.  Some research suggests that acupuncture can be effective in the treatment of heel pain.

Trigger-Point Massage

• A trigger point is an irritable knot in the muscle tissue. When pressed trigger points are very tender and can cause pain in that specific spot or elsewhere in the body (referred pain). The response to pushing into the knot is a muscle twitch.
• The foot contains 126 muscles, tendons, and ligaments, so there are plenty of ‘hiding places’ for trigger points. Trigger points in the calf muscles often refer pain directly to the bottom of the foot. Trigger point therapy of the lower leg and foot can, therefore, be successful in the treatment of plantar fasciitis.

Strassburg Sock and Night Splint

• The Strassburg Sock consists of a tubular fabric with two adjustable straps which extends from the toes to the lower leg. The aim is to keep tension on the plantar fascia ligament all night long, so no tightness occurs overnight and little or no pain is experienced in the morning. In combination with orthotic insoles and exercises, this device can be very effective indeed. In an independent study published in the Journal of Foot and Ankle Surgery found some significant improvement in 55% of the participants.
• A night splint is very similar to the Strassburg sock, serving the same purpose. However, this boot-type device is very uncomfortable to wear at night and very cumbersome, this is why most people prefer wearing a sock.

Surgical Treatment

• If the patient continues to have moderate to severe symptoms that do not respond to nonoperative treatment for more than 6–12 months, referral to an orthopedic surgeon for operative treatment may be required.
• Albert dropped by your clinic two weeks later to thank you for treating his pain with only the calf and plantar fascia-specific stretch you taught him. He had since revised his health pledge to include a regular exercise program that combines stationary cycling and a slow jog. He will gradually work toward 150  minutes of moderate exercise a week and will postpone his half marathon pledge for another year. Surgery is considered only after 12 months of aggressive nonsurgical treatment.

Gastrocnemius Recession

• This is a surgical lengthening of the calf (gastrocnemius) muscles. Because tight calf muscles place increased stress on the plantar fascia, this procedure is useful for patients who still have difficulty flexing their feet, despite a year of calf stretches.
• In the gastrocnemius recession, one of the two muscles that make up the calf is lengthened to increase the motion of the ankle. The procedure can be performed with a traditional, open incision or with a smaller incision and an endoscope, an instrument that contains a small camera. Your doctor will discuss the procedure that best meets your needs. Complication rates for gastrocnemius recession are low but can include nerve damage.

Plantar Fascia Release

• If you have a normal range of ankle motion and continued heel pain, your doctor may recommend a partial release procedure. During surgery, the plantar fascia ligament is partially cut to relieve tension in the tissue. If you have a large bone spur, it will be removed, as well. Although the surgery can be performed endoscopically, it is more difficult than with an open incision. In addition, endoscopy has a higher risk of nerve damage.

Endoscopic Plantar Fasciotomy (EPF)

• It is a form of surgery whereby two incisions are made around the heel and the ligament is being detached from the heel bone allowing the new ligament to develop in the same place. In some cases, the surgeon may decide to remove the heel spur itself, if present.
• Just like any type of surgery, Plantar Fascia surgery comes with certain risks and side effects.  For example, the arch of the foot may drop and become weak. Wearing an arch support after surgery is therefore recommended.
• Heel spur surgeries may also do some damage to the veins and arteries of your foot that allow blood supply in the area. This will increase the time of recovery.

Prevention

There are certain things that you can do to try to prevent plantar fasciitis, especially if you have had it before. These include:

• Regularly changing training shoes used for running or walking.
• Wearing shoes with good cushioning in the heels and good arch support.
• Losing weight if you are overweight.
• Regularly stretching the plantar fascia and Achilles tendon, especially before exercise.
• Avoiding exercising on hard surfaces

Reference

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