Plantar Fasciitis

You have a lot of foot tendons, fibrous tissue, bone, and muscle. Plantar fasciitis occurs when fibrous tissue that connects your toes to your heel bone to become irritated and inflamed. Pain can occur after sitting or lying down for a long time and can come on suddenly. The pain is usually sharp (most people describe it as a sharp pain) and eased slightly as you move around. Pain may recur if you stand on your feet for a long time, or if you once again sit for long periods of time and then get up to walk.

Anatomy of the Foot

To understand plantar fasciitis is important to understand the anatomy of the foot. Your feet are very similar to the structure of your hand. Bones, tendons, and muscles are connected and maintained by blood vessels. Fibrous tissue and tendons provide flexibility your feet and help you keep your balance while walking.

A long fibrous tissue that connects to the toes and extending from the bottom of your foot and connects to your heel bone. It is this network, the plantar fascia acts as a shock absorber and supports the arch of your foot, which becomes inflamed when plantar fasciitis.

Cause

Usually runners and people who carry extra weight complaining of pain of plantar fasciitis. This is because the additional stress placed on the feet and fibrous tissue. If left untreated small tears in the plantar fascia can occur causing more pain and damage. Repetitive stretching can also cause the condition. Age is also another factor. Most cases occur in people aged between 40 and 60. The specific activities put you at greater risk, such as running, aerobic dance, and ballet dancing. People with flat feet or high arches are also at greater risk as well as people who work in jobs that require you to be on your feet for long periods of time.

Treatment

You may get help from the rest and NSAIDs that help reduce pain and inflammation such as Advil or Motrin. Naproxen, Alleve, also used to help reduce inflammation. Physical therapy aims to stretch the plantar fascia and strengthen the muscles of the lower leg can be prescribed by your doctor. Your doctor may also recommend a night splints that help stretch the calf and arch of your foot while you sleep. Custom fitted orthotics or over the counter heel cup can also help to provide relief.

If the pain is severe the doctor may also inject steroids into the area to provide relief from pain. Repeated use of steroid injections are not recommended because it can weaken the fibrous tissue and cause it to rupture. Chronic plantar fasciitis can be treated with extracorporeal shock wave therapy. This therapy directs sound waves to the heel of your foot to help promote healing. Care must be taken with this type of therapy because it can cause swelling, pain, numbness and tingling, or bruising. In operation causes a very heavy to remove the fibrous tissue of the heel bone may be required, but this treatment is very rarely used.

If you experience sudden stabbing and heel pain after sitting for a while ask your doctor about the possibility of plantar fasciitis. There are treatments to help relieve the pain and irritation and get you back to your day to day activities.