Plantar Fasciitis-Dr Manish Bansal

This blog will touch upon the topic of Plantar Fasciitis. This is also called the policeman’s heel. Plantar Fasciitis is a condition in which the heel region of your foot presents pain.  Plantar Fasciitis usually occurs in the age group if 40-50 years old. It is one of the most common causes of heel pain. Plantar fasciitis is an overuse injury, like carpal tunnel syndrome or tennis elbow in your foot, an inflammatory thickening and/or degeneration of the plantar fascia. It involves inflammation of a thick band of tissue that runs across the bottom of your foot and connects your heel bone to your toes (plantar fascia).

Plantar fasciitis starts without any history of trauma. The first step in the morning is most painful for people suffering from it The pain increases on walking with the barefoot and usually decreases with the passage of the day but can increase after long-standing hours or activities that cause strain. Although the exact reason as to why this happens is still unknown, It is more common in runners. In addition, people who are overweight and those who wear shoes with inadequate support have an increased risk. The plantar fascia is not really a tendon: it’s a sheet of connective tissue (“fascia”), more like a ligament than a tendon. It stretches from the heel to toes, spanning the arch of the foot, from bones at the back to bones at the front (whereas tendons connect muscles to bones).

It is caused due to the inflammation of the tissue of the heel at the place where it attaches to the bone. It is usually self-limiting and improves after 3-6 months and most people will get better on their own.

The treatment includes appropriate shoe air, physiotherapy, stretching exercises and pain relievers. Some people may need a steroid injection into the painful tissue while some may need an arthroscopic surgery, in very extreme cases.   Usually, X-ray might show the bony spur. But in most the patients it is not the cause of pain in plantar fasciitis. Ignoring plantar fasciitis may result in chronic heel pain that hinders your regular activities. Changing the way you walk to minimize plantar fasciitis pain might lead to foot, knee, hip or back problems.

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