Tag Archives: Plantar Fasciitis

physical therapy for plantar fasciitis pain

Physical Therapy For Plantar Fasciitis Pain

- Blog, Foot

plantar fasciitis physical therapy; physical therapy for plantar fasciitis

Does your foot or heel hurt with the first step in the morning? Does your foot hurt when you get up from sitting or driving for long periods of time? If the answer is yes, you may have plantar fasciitis. Plantar fasciitis is the most common type of foot pain. Plantar fasciitis is the irritation or inflammation of the plantar fascia. The plantar fascia is a thick dense connective tissue that attaches to the heel and ball of the foot. A related problem is a heel spur which is extra bone that may grow from the heel bone. This is in response to the plantar fascia being tight or inflamed, thus pulling on the heel bone.

Inflammation and microtears occur more commonly in sports that involve running, long-distance walking, dancing, tennis, basketball, and in non-athletes who spend long periods of time walking on unyielding surfaces. Patients with pes planus and heel pronation have an increased likelihood of developing plantar fasciitis because of the increased tension on the plantar fascia caused by these anatomic features. A tight gastrocnemius can result in heel pronation thereby making plantar fasciitis more likely. Cavus feet with relative rigidity also place more stress on the plantar fascia. The plantar fascia also tends to become more rigid with age making it less effective as a shock absorber and more likely to develop microtears.

Common Causes of Plantar Fasciitis:

  • Too Rapid of an Increase in Exercise Program.
  • Change in Lifestyle (Active to more Sedentary) Causing Sudden Weight Gain or Sedentary to Active.
  • Muscle Tightness and/or Weakness.
  • Poor Biomechanics (movement) at the Foot and Ankle.
  • Inadequate Cushioning in Shoes or Inadequate Shoes.
  • Occupation with prolonged weight bearing on Hard Surfaces.

Plantar Fasciitis Symptoms:

People with plantar fasciitis complain of searing pain at the point of the fascias insertion into the calcaneus. This pain is at its worst with the first few steps upon arising in the morning or after a sustained period of being off their feet. The plantar fascia origin is often extremely tender to palpation. Pain is also increased after long periods of walking, climbing stairs or doing toe raises.

For Plantar Fasciitis Pain Relief at Home – Try These Stretches:

plantar fasciitis stretch
Frozen Can Roll
Take a frozen food can and roll your foot forwards and back.

plantar fasciitis exercise

Towel Grab
Grab and pick up a towel or dishcloth using only your toes.

 

Finding Plantar Fasciitis Relief with Physical Therapy:

Physical Therapy for Plantar Fasciitis

Physical therapy evaluation generally reveals an antalgic gait pattern especially when first beginning to walk. Often foot is pronated, gastrocnemius is shortened and there is severe pain with palpation of the inferior, medial heel. Most people can experience relief in just a few sessions. However, the longer the pain remains untreated, the longer it will take to heal. It can even become so chronic in some cases other non-conservative treatments are deemed necessary. If you are experiencing symptoms similar to the ones listed earlier you may have plantar fasciitis. If you are diagnosed with plantar fasciitis physical therapy can help you resolve your pain.

Physical therapists take the time to educate each plantar fasciitis patient on how to prevent a recurrence of pain. They provide preventative stretching programs that can be done at home, instruct on what to look for when purchasing new shoes, and if necessary, help patients adapt their current lifestyle to prevent re-injury.

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More Articles about Plantar Fasciitis Physical Therapy:

Plantar Fasciitis   Plantar-Fascioisis

common running injuries

Common Running Injuries

- Blog, Leg, Sports and Fitness

Physical therapy for runners
Running can be great for your health, but if an injury occurs never be afraid to seek help. The best treatment for injuries for runners is early management and education on self-care specific to the injury. We’ve compiled a list of common running injuries below. If you are experiencing lasting pain that affects your ability to complete your run or activities throughout your day, don’t modify your behavior – talk to your physical therapist.

IT (Iliotibial) Band Syndrome

  • Common Causes: Improper footwear, Increasing mileage and/or intensity too quickly are all things that lead to common running injuries
  • Symptoms: Usually occurs after a short period of running with sharp pain on the outside of the knee

For more information click here

Piriformis Syndrome

  • Common Causes: Increasing mileage and/or intensity too quickly, Poor running mechanics, Usually associated with weak hips and core can lead to common running injuries.
  • Symptoms: Local pain and tightness in the buttock with possible tingling or numbness down the back of the leg. Most noted during prolonged sitting.

Shin Splints

  • Common Causes: Improper footwear, Lack of flexibility in calves, running on hard surfaces can also lead to common running injuries.
  • Symptoms: Throbbing or aching pain along the front of the shin. Usually occurs during and/or following a prolonged run or walk.

For more information click here

Plantar Fasciitis

  • Common Causes: Improper footwear, Change in running surface, Calf tightness, increasing mileage and/or intensity too quickly can lead to common running injuries.
  • Symptoms: Deep ache and/or sharp pain in the bottom of the heel. Most commonly felt in the morning or following prolonged sitting

For more information click here

Runner’s Knee

  • Common Causes: Increasing mileage and/or intensity too quickly, Poor running mechanics lead to common running injuries.
  • Symptoms: Swelling, Aching pain behind and/ or around the kneecap, pain walking up and/or downstairs.

Achilles Tendinitis

  • Common Causes: Improper footwear, Increasing mileage and/or intensity too quickly lead to common running injuries.
  • Symptoms: Swelling, painful to the touch, lack of flexibility along the back of the lower leg close to the heel.

For more information click here

 

Training Injuries

Improper Exercise Leads to Training Injuries

- Blog, Sports and Fitness

Training Injuries

The amount of physical activity you need depends on your individual fitness goals and your current fitness level.  It’s important to start within your abilities and to listen to your body’s cues in terms of pain and injury. If you experience a training injury and your body starts to ache past the point of normal muscle soreness, your body is trying to tell you that something is wrong.  For a short time, you’ll be able to push through the ache, but eventually, a breakdown will happen, and weakness and lack of flexibility will begin. Once you have a breakdown, the pain will happen and more than likely you will stop training. We want to help you before you get to a breakdown.

Training Injuries

Training injuries can be sustained from weight training, martial arts training, and sport-specific training. Common injuries include:

  • Strain/Sprain (commonly called a pulled muscle)
  • Tendinitis,  Back/Neck Pain, Tennis Elbow (Inflammation of the tendon fibers that attach the forearm extensor muscles to the outside of the elbow).
  • Carpal Tunnel: Numbness, tingling, or a dull sensation of the thumb, index finger, and middle fingers due to compression to the median nerve in your wrist.
  • Muscle Tear/Rupture
  • Separated or Dislocated Joint (shoulder, hip, knee)
  • Bursitis: Tightness in the hip or pain radiating down the lateral thigh contusion

Running Injuries

Overuse musculoskeletal injuries occur frequently in runners. Proper stretching and training principles can reduce your risk of developing a running injury.

  • Shin Splints: An overuse injury of the anterior or posterior tibialis muscles, characterized by pain or soreness down either side of the shin. Technically, this condition is tendinitis or inflammation of the tendons/muscles that attach to the tibia.
  • Achilles Tendinitis: Inflammation of the Achilles Tendon with possible thickening or thinning of the tendon and associated with pain resulting from overuse, overstretch, or poor flexibility. Hills or jumping activity will exacerbate this condition.
  • Plantar Fasciitis: Inflammation of the plantar fascia, which is the connective tissue supporting the arch of the foot. There may be point tenderness at the heel and arch.  This condition usually occurs with increased mileage or won/unsupported shoes. This condition may lead to heel spurs.

Prevent Injury While you Train

Injury can happen at any time, but there are steps you can take before during, and after your run to help prevent long-term pain. Prior to your run allow yourself at least a five-minute warm-up.  Suggestions include jumping rope, jumping jacks, light jogging, or a combination. After your warm-up takes the time to gently stretch your muscles.  Remember not to bounce.

While you are training it is important to use the proper equipment. This includes shoes for your foot type (high arch, flat foot, neutral foot), comfortable clothing, and appropriate socks. If the shoe is fitted to your foot, you will need to change running shoes every 400 miles. Even sooner if wear has occurred to the foot platform. Also make sure to change the running path often, aka different locations, terrains, surfaces, and directions.  Cross-training is also important.  We recommend using a Stairmaster or elliptical trainer, biking, swimming, yoga, Pilates. After a run, it is important to cool down with more intense stretching than the warm-up.

How Physical Therapy Can Help

TRAINING ASSESSMENTS

  • Educate on faulty or improper posture or body mechanics with training
  • Educate and help with techniques on exercises that help your muscles stretch farther. Flexibility training helps prevent cramps, stiffness, and injuries and can give a wider range of motion.
  • Correct muscle imbalances through flexibility and strength training
  • Endurance training
  • Alleviate pain
  • Correct improper movement patterns

RUNNING ASSESSMENTS

  • Modify training when you have a minor ache and pain (This does not always mean you need to stop training)
  • Get assessed for weakness and flexibility issues to address biomechanical deficits.  A therapist can videotape your running to look for biomechanical deficits that you may have while running
  • Look at foot mechanics for proper shoe type, stability, motion control, and neutral/cushion shoes

Find a PT

We have talented teams of physical therapists throughout the U.S. that can help you get the care you need.  Whether you need training injury prevention or recovery, our specialists have the skills and know-how to get you back to your workout routine or sport safely.

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dry needling physical therapist

What is Trigger Point Dry Needling?

- Blog, Manual Therapy

Trigger point dry needling physical therapy

TRIGGER POINT DRY NEEDLING uses small, thin needles to stimulate underlying myofascial trigger points, muscular and connective tissues for the management of many orthopedic conditions, both acute and chronic. Physical therapists use dry needling as a safe, effective, and efficient treatment technique to release painful hyper-irritable spots within a band of skeletal muscle. By inserting a needle into the dysfunctional tissue, it often leads to a contraction of the muscle which then stimulates a release. This leads to a reduction of pain, improvements in flexibility and a restoration of normalized movement when combined with corrective exercises.

WHAT IS A MYOFASCIAL TRIGGER POINT?
A myofascial trigger point is a hyperirritable spot within a taut band of skeletal muscle that produces local or referred pain. The trigger point can lead to increased pain, decreased flexibility and decreased muscle function if not treated. Trigger point dry needling is a safe, effective and efficient treatment technique to release these painful spots.

WHAT TYPE OF PROBLEMS CAN BE TREATED?
Muscle dysfunction can be the primary or secondary contributing factor to many neuromusculoskeletal conditions, which can include:

•  Repetitive Stress Injuries
•  Tendonitis or Tendinopathy
•  Muscle Strains
•  IT Band Syndrome
•  Patellofemoral Dysfunction
•  Plantar Fasciitis
•  Neck Pain or Headaches
•  Rotator Cuff Impingement
•  Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
•  SI Joint Dysfunction
•  Sciatica

Dry needling

This treatment is NOT acupuncture. Modern dry needling is based on Western neuroanatomy and modern scientifi c study of the muscles and nervous system. This modality can only be done by trained clinicians.

If you are interested in Trigger Point Dry Needling, find a physical therapist near you and ask for more information.

Plantar Fasciitis

Hamstring Tightness and Plantar Fasciitis

- Blog, Foot, Leg

Hamstring Tightness_FBsize

Plantar fasciitis is classically characterized by pain in the central to medial plantar heel. It is thought to be caused by chronic inflammation of the plantar fascia due to repetitive strain and trauma to the fascia. There are many other purported causes including, calcaneal spurs and increased intraosseous calcaneal pressure, among others. Many studies have shown inflammatory and histological changes at the origin of the plantar fascia and surrounding structures that are consistent with repetitive strain and degenerative changes including a thickening of the fascia.

Biomechanics has long been looked at when investigating possible causes of injuries. Alteration of the load-bearing characteristics of the foot has been suggested by several studies to be the underlying problem in plantar fasciitis. Microtears and chronic degenerative changes result from the increased tensile stress placed on the fascia due to the changes in biomechanics. Muscle tightness is one factor that can lead to changes in gait mechanics and load bearing of the foot. Hamstring tightness has recently been investigated as a factor in plantar fasciitis and has been shown to induce prolonged forefoot loading due to increased knee flexion during gait. A rapid progression through the contact phase of gait results from increased knee flexion and in turn increases forefoot pressure. The fascia is a fixed-length ligament, so an increase in forefoot pressure results in increased tension at its insertion on the calcaneus. The increased time spent on the forefoot in gait leads to a chronic traction injury that is localized to the hindfoot insertion of the fascia; which is consistent with the symptoms of heel pain.

plantar

Biomechanical deficits have long contributed to injuries. Only recently has hamstring tightness been shown to have an effect on plantar fasciitis. Hamstring tightness affects every step, resulting in a biomechanical deficit which may contribute to a tensile overload of the plantar fasciitis. Recent studies suggest that all patients with plantar fasciitis should be evaluated for hamstring tightness. Physical therapy treatment for plantar fasciitis should include hamstring stretching.

More information about Plantar Fasciitis can be found in the PTandMe injury center.

physical therapy near me

This information was written by Plymouth Physical Therapy Specialists. They are committed to using evidence-based treatments in their practice. This means that their therapists utilize the most current and clinically relevant treatments in their approach to rehabilitation. For more information click here.