Health And Fitness

How to deal with plantar fasciitis?

Heel pain in adults can be due to numerous disorders, but by far the most common cause is a condition called plantar fasciitis. The pain from plantar fasciitis generally occurs under the heel and the classic sign is that the pain is worse when getting up first thing each morning for those first few steps. Following those initial steps the discomfort does ease to some degree, but it worsens once more as the day goes on. The plantar fascia is a long ligament underneath the bottom of the foot which is responsible for assisting the arch of the foot, so plantar fasciitis is because there is too much stress on the arch of the foot. The leading risk factors for plantar fasciitis are tight calf muscles, being overweight and having greater levels of exercise. Lower limb structural problems that increases the load in the plantar fascia are also an issue in increasing the stress.

The primary approach to plantar fasciitis is pain relief by using ice following activity and maybe using anti-inflammatory as well as pain relief medication. Strapping could also be used temporarily to help with the pain. Foot supports enables you to reduce the force on the arch of the feet and correct any structural problems that maybe a factor in causing the condition. You should stretch the leg muscles as it really is a big risk. Night may also be used to assist with that stretching if required. Strengthening the muscles which also support the arch can also be advantageous since they take some load of the plantar fascia. Over the long term, weight reduction is recommended since this actually does produce a lot of load in the feet. In the event these types of approaches aren't working to well, then it is time to try things like shockwave therapy or corticosteroid injections. A last consideration would be surgical treatment.