Plantar Fasciitis
When a new patient visits our office with complaints of heel and arch pain, plantar fasciitis is often the primary diagnosis.
When a new patient visits our office with complaints of heel and arch pain, plantar fasciitis is often the primary diagnosis.
This condition can progressively worsen without appropriate treatment, making it crucial not to disregard the discomfort. Fortunately, at Lexington Podiatry, heel pain, particularly plantar fasciitis, is one of the most prevalent conditions we address.
Diagnosing
To diagnose plantar fasciitis, we first do a thorough examination of your feet including an ultrasound which is real time imagery of the inside of your foot to determine the evaluate of extent of inflammation of the plantar fascia. We also conduct a gait analysis exam to observe your walking pattern and potential triggers.
Symptoms
Symptoms are marked by pain and stiffness in your arch or heel, most intense when first standing. Many patients that have suffered from plantar fasciitis for a long time can also develop heel spurs.
Treatment
When treating plantar fasciitis, we begin by reducing inflammation and relieving tightness on the surrounding muscles.
Reduce Inflammation: We have a few different options here, ranging from laser therapy to ice treatments to anti-inflammatory medications, arch supports, or in more severe cases, steroid injections or physical therapy. It just depends on the severity of the inflammation and pain.
Relieve Tightness: You may need semi-custom or custom orthotics for arch support, which fit discreetly into many shoes. If you're experiencing significant pain, a walking boot might be prescribed to aid healing.
Sometimes, simply changing shoes and using a stretching splint can help. Bring your most-worn shoes to your appointment to check if they're the issue. A heel rocker is highly effective for calf stretches, all of which we dispense in office the same day.
Prevention
If the way you walk is causing your plantar fasciitis, it might not get better on its own. This is because those habits are usually picked up during childhood, and are hard to change alone. To help with this, we can set you up with custom orthotics or arch supports. These keep your arches from collapsing and stops the problem from coming back. We might also suggest physical therapy, specific exercises, or switching up your shoes to help ease the pain.