Plantar Fasciitis BLOG

PLANTAR FASCIITIS AND HEEL SPURS

About 2-3 million people suffer from a painful condition that affects the heel called Plantar Fasciitis. The plantar facia stretches along the bottom of the foot and is responsible for maintaining the arch of the foot. When the plantar facia becomes weakened it starts stretching away from the heel and a heel spur forms.

Plantar Fasciitis is common among runners, walkers, and other endurance athletes. Overweight people and those whose jobs require a lot of standing and walking are also at risk. Other factors include flat or high-arched feet, worn out shoes, increasing age and poor healing.

The typical person with plantar fasciitis will experience heel pain in the morning upon rising and it can progress to heel pain with activity and even with just walking. Sometimes the whole arch and bottom of the foot will hurt.

Generally the condition is treated by orthotics and anti-inflammatories. Eventually the person sees a podatrist where cortisone shots are given.

In my experience of treating plantar fasciitis for over 14 years with Prolotherapy along with Dr. Gustav Hemwall's over 40 years experience (the doctor whose practice I took over) we have had at least a 85% of success with Prolotherapy. In total we have treated hundreds and hundreds of heels and arches with Prolotherapy, usually it being the sole treatment to the heel area. We don't use orthotics. Typically we treat the heels with 6-10 injections of Prolotherapy. Plantar Faciitis and heel spurs typically need 3 to 6 visits. In our experience it is by far the best and most cost effective therapy for the condition.

Article by Ross Hauser, M.D.
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Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy
Most Prolotherapists know that the best treatment for chronic plantar fasciitis is Prolotherapy. Prolotherapy to the plantar fascia attachments and the ligaments underneath this structure, such as the spring ligament, can help strengthen the arches of the foot. When the arches and supporting structures are strong, the pain goes away.

Recently it was shown that extracorporeal shock wave therapy for plantar fasciitis had no benefit. Read more

Too Much Inflammation
The clinic where I go does Prolotherapy. However the doctor there said that my Plantar Fasciitis is too severe for Prolotherapy. He was concerned that if I got Prolotherapy, it would cause more inflammation. It was suggested that I take Wobenzym N to help the "inflamation". I have been taking a total of 10 a day. My left foot is worst than the right. Is there any truth to this? I can only see a slight decrease in pain. I sit all day (office job) but, was exercising in the evening with an aerobics tape last fall with a 3 mile walk. I have been suffering with this since summer - I attribute it to my high arch and wearing flip flops and sandals all summer.

A. Usually someone in your situation would benefit from Prolotherapy done every week to two weeks for three visits. The other issue is that you may have a stress fracture. We have seen this in what appears to be plantar fasciitis but the pain seems more severe than this condition. So you may want to get a 3 phase bone scan. This will tell you one way or the other, whether you have a stress fracture or plantar fasciitis.

Article by Ross Hauser, M.D.
Add A Comment About This Article Or Add A Comment About Plantar Fasciitis Pain