Plantar fasciitis of the foot is diagnosed in many people, especially those who are seriously involved in sports. This disease causes a lot of problems, in particular, a person experiences severe pain while walking, often swelling of the foot and stiffness in movement.
Treating this pathology is required immediately, and most importantly, resorting to an integrated approach for this. Otherwise, there will be significant health problems requiring exclusively surgical intervention.
What is plantar fasciitis of the foot?
Plantar fasciitis of the foot is a disease in which there is an acute inflammatory process in the tissues of the foot.
The second name of this pathology is plantar fasciitis.
The disease is not uncommon, it occurs in 43% of people after 40 - 45 years old and is especially often diagnosed in athletes - runners, cyclists, jumpers, weightlifters.
Doctors consider the most important features of plantar fasciitis:
- Damage to the elastic tissues of the feet begins suddenly and progresses rapidly.
- A person experiences severe pain, great swelling, difficulty in movement, and so on.
- If there is no timely treatment, then the prognosis is unfavorable, in particular, ruptures of the tendons of the legs, constant tension and a feeling of stiffness when walking are not excluded.
- There is a chronic inflammation in the heels.
Fasciitis in a mild form can go away on its own if the patient follows the recommendations of doctors, in particular, lies more, eliminates any pressure on the foot and wears a tight bandage.
Signs of the disease
It is difficult to miss the development of plantar fasciitis, the disease has pronounced symptoms.
The primary doctors include:
- Sharp pain while walking.
In severe form, a person experiences pain in the feet constantly, even during rest. In 96% of cases, it is aching in nature, and during the load on the legs it is acute.
- Feeling of constant pressure on the lower limbs.
- Inability to stand on tiptoes.
86% of patients with fasciitis report that shooting pain occurs when trying to stand on toes or heels.
- After waking up, a person needs to disperse, the first steps are difficult, often people complain that they feel as if they have attached pood weights to their feet.
- Swelling of the foot.
- Lameness.
Lameness occurs as a result of constant pain during movement and the inability to fully step on the heel.
- Redness and burning in the heels.
The more a person moves, puts pressure on the lower limbs, the more severe the symptoms are.
Causes of occurrence
Plantar fasciitis develops in humans for many reasons.
In 87% of cases, this pathology is diagnosed due to:
Excessive stress on the feet.
This is noted as a result:
- prolonged standing, especially when a person is forced to stand for 7 - 8 hours without sitting down;
- performing unbearable exercises, in particular, squats with a load, lifting weights;
People who work as loaders are 2 times more likely to suffer from plantar fasciitis than other citizens.
- forced standing on tiptoes for more than one hour a day;
- walking with unbearable weight in the hands, for example, carrying heavy objects or bags.
Wearing squeeze shoes, including high heels.
In women who are lovers of shoes, boots and high-heeled sandals, this pathology is noted 2.5 times more often than in men.
- Pregnancy, but only between 28 and 40 weeks.
The development of plantar fasciitis in the first and second trimester of pregnancy is minimized. This is due to the lack of high loads on the legs due to the small weight of the fetus.
- Flat feet.
People with diagnosed flat feet are 3.5 times more likely to develop inflammation in the joints and tissues of the lower extremities. This is due to the incorrectly positioned foot when walking, as well as the lack of natural bending on the foot.
- Obesity. As a result of excess weight, there is a huge load on the tendons of the feet, which leads to many problems with the legs, in particular, fasciitis.
- Previous injuries of the lower extremities, for example, muscle sprains, fractures and dislocations.
- Some chronic diseases, for example:
- diabetes;
- gout;
- arthritis;
- arthrosis.
Such chronic diseases provoke the development of inflammatory processes in the tendons and tissues of the feet.
Running causes of plantar fasciitis
Plantar fasciitis is especially often diagnosed in professional athletes, as well as people who are seriously fond of running, athletics and weightlifting.
The main running causes of this pathology include:
1. Huge loads on the foot during the race.
2. Wrong execution of the warm-up before the start.
It is extremely important for all runners and other athletes to do exercises to warm up the calf muscles.
3. An unnaturally high rise of the foot during a run or jump.
4. Running in the mountains.
Training in uncomfortable shoes, in particular when sneakers:
- squeeze the foot strongly;
- do not have bendable soles;
- small or large;
- made of cheap and low-quality materials;
- rub their feet.
5. Speed races, especially with an obstacle.
6. Incorrectly placed foot while running.
7. Long training sessions on an asphalt road.
Running on the pavement for a long time will stretch the tendons and injure the entire foot.
Treatment of plantar fascia inflammation
Drug treatment, physiotherapy
It is possible to get rid of the inflammation of the plantar fascia in an extremely complex way, including:
Reception strictly according to the doctor's prescription of medications, in particular:
- pain pills;
- syrups or tablets that have anti-inflammatory effects;
- injections or droppers to help speed up the recovery of tendons and ligaments.
The course of injections and droppers is prescribed in the acute form of the course of the disease, as well as when the pathology has passed into the last stage.
- Applying warming and anti-inflammatory ointments to the foot.
- Various compresses and baths, selected depending on the severity of the disease, as well as the characteristics of the body. Mainly recommend:
- rubbing essential oil into the heel;
Rub the oil in an amount of 3 - 5 milliliters, then wrap the leg with a towel and do not remove it for 10 minutes. Then it is important to shower and go to bed.
- wrap ice cubes in a clean towel and wrap them around the problem foot;
The ice pack cannot be kept for more than 25 minutes.
- add 200 milliliters of chamomile broth (strong) to a bowl of warm water. Then lower your feet into the prepared bath for 10 - 15 minutes.
All procedures need to be done daily, in severe cases 2 - 3 times a day, until the pain syndrome passes and there is a significant relief of the condition.
- take a bath of warm water and add 2 - 3 tablespoons of salt to it. After that, lie in the water for 15 minutes, and then rub the disturbing foot with a saline solution.
For grinding, add 15 grams of salt to two liters of water. Then moisten clean gauze in the prepared solution and apply it to the affected area for 15 minutes. Then the leg needs to be washed with water.
- Physiotherapy, for example, shock wave therapy. During this procedure, the doctor applies special sensors to the sore foot that emit special sound waves. As a result, such waves accelerate the recovery processes, and also lead to the healing of tissues and ligaments 3 times faster.
- Wearing a supportive orthosis. Orthoses resemble soft boots that a person puts on before bed as a fixation device. Thanks to them, the foot does not bend, is in the correct slightly bent position and is not injured.
The duration of wearing orthoses is determined by the attending orthopedist.
Surgical intervention
Doctors can prescribe an operation only if:
- unbearable pain around the clock;
- inability to step on the foot;
- the strongest inflammatory process in tissues and tendons;
- when alternative therapy, for example, medications and physiotherapy, did not give positive dynamics.
Doctors perform the operation in one of two ways. Some patients undergo lengthening of the calf muscles, and others detach the fascia from the bone.
What method of surgical intervention should be resorted to is decided only by doctors after examinations, ultrasound and the results of the patient's analyzes.
After the operation, 82% of people completely get rid of glider fasciitis and never in their life experience a relapse of this pathology.
Exercises for plantar fasciitis
All people diagnosed with plantar fasciitis benefit from doing specific exercises.
Thanks to them, it happens:
- relief from pain, including while walking;
- removal of puffiness and redness;
- accelerating the recovery of ligaments and tissues.
As noted by orthopedists, people who perform special exercises get rid of plantar fasciitis 2.5 times faster.
Some of the most effective and beneficial exercises are:
- Daily walking in special shoes. A person with a diagnosed pathology needs to purchase orthopedic shoes and walk exclusively in them.
If fasciitis is mild, orthopedists may prescribe walking in orthopedic shoes for 2 to 3 hours a day.
- Walking on a special carpet. This rug has special indentations and bulges. Walking on it increases blood flow to the heels and reduces inflammation.
- Walking first on the heels, then on the toes. Required:
- take off shoes and socks;
- spread a soft blanket;
If there are carpets on the floor, a blanket is not required.
- with bare feet, take slow and small steps, first on the heels, then on the toes.
You need to alternate walking, take 5 steps on your heels, and after 5 steps on your toes.
- Rolling a rolling pin or bottle with your feet.
For this exercise you need:
- take a glass or plastic bottle, preferably a 1.5 liter one (if there is no bottle, a wooden rolling pin will do);
- sit on a chair;
- put a rolling pin (bottle) in front of you;
- put both feet on the bottle (rolling pin);
- roll the object with your feet for 3 - 4 minutes.
Exercise should be done with bare feet and daily.
All exercises are prescribed by an orthopedist, and most importantly, he controls and monitors the dynamics of recovery for performing such physical education.
Plantar fasciitis is a fairly common pathology, against the background of which there is an inflammatory process in the tissues of the foot. Basically, this disease affects people who have to stand for a long time, as well as athletes, in particular, runners and weightlifters.
It is required to treat fasciitis as soon as doctors have made this diagnosis, and as a therapy, resort to medications, physiotherapy and special exercises.
Blitz - tips:
- you should visit the orthopedist as soon as pain begins to be felt in the foot area and swelling begins to appear;
- do not try to overcome the disease on your own, otherwise you can aggravate its course;
- it is important to do all exercises under the supervision of an orthopedist, so as not to injure the foot and not stretch the ligaments;
- the main thing is not to forget to warm up and massage your calf muscles with your hands before training or running;
- the main thing is to always avoid overexertion and excessive stress on the legs.
