Plantar Fasciitis

Plantar fascia is a band of tissue that connects the heel and ball of your foot. Plantar fasciitis is foot pain caused by a problem with your plantar fascia. It's sometimes called plantar fasciosis.

• It's the most common cause of heel pain

• The pain is often worse when you start walking first thing in the morning and after periods of rest

• It's common in people who spend a lot of time on their feet

• Stretching, applying ice, and changing shoes can help

• Doctors sometimes give you corticosteroid shots

Plantar Fascia

The plantar fascia is the connective tissue between your heel bone and the ball of your foot.

Plantar fasciitis is caused by strain, tearing, or wearing out of the tough band of tissue in your feet called the plantar fascia.

Strains or tears of the fascia are more likely to happen if you:

• Wear high heels

• Are a runner or dancer

• Sit all the time

• Spend a lot of time on your feet on very hard surfaces

• Have tight calf muscles

• Have flat feet or very high arches

The following may cause plantar fasciosis or make it worse:

• Being very overweight

• Having rheumatoid arthritis

The main symptom is:

• Pain in your heel when you put weight on your foot

You usually have the heel pain first thing in the morning, but it goes away in 5 or 10 minutes. It usually comes back later in the day.

To tell if you have plantar fasciitis, doctors will do a physical exam. If they think your fascia may have torn or your pain is coming from another problem, they may do tests such as:

• X-ray

• MRI (magnetic resonance imaging)

To lessen pain and lower the stress on your foot:

• Take smaller steps

• Don't walk barefoot

• Avoid jogging and other high-impact activities

• Lose weight, if you're overweight

• Do stretches of your calves and feet

Doctors may have you:

• Rest and put ice on your foot

• Wear a splint at night to stretch the muscle

• Wear special devices (orthotics) that fit in your shoe

• Do physical therapy

• Get corticosteroid injections into your heel

If your pain doesn't get better, doctors may:

• Put a cast on your foot for a while

• Apply sound waves to the heel to improve your circulation and lessen the pain (extracorporeal pulse activation therapy)

• Do surgery