Plantar Fasciitis
The plantar fascia is a thick band of connective tissue that extends from the bottom of the heel bone out to the ball of the foot. It is a ligament-like structure that connects the heel with the toes, and its main function is to stabilize the arch of the foot and to assist in the walking cycle. Sometimes, due to consistent over-use or trauma, partial tears near the attachment to the heel occur. This is commonly known as plantar fasciitis or fasciopathy. It is the most common form of heel pain, which is at its most intense in the morning, with the first steps of the day. Many times it can be associated with a ?heel spur?, which is an extension of bone that has formed as a result of excessive strain on the heel bone from the plantar fascia.
Plantar fasciitis is primarily caused by excessive hindfoot motion, as a direct consequence of talotarsal dislocation, a misalignment of the ankle bone on the hindfoot bones. This abnormal and excessive motion of the rear-foot causes the plantar fascia to over-stretch, eventually creating the micro-ruptures that lead to the painful tearing, inflammation and resulting pain.
Plantar fasciitis has a very distinctive pain cycle. When there is no weight on the foot, the fibers contract as they try to repair themselves, and the pain dissipates. However, as soon as weight is placed on the foot, the fibers are over-stretched again, causing the pain to return. Eventually, with repeated walking, the fibers get ?stretched out? and the pain temporarily subsides until, once again, the weight is taken off and the whole process is repeated.
There are many treatments commonly used to address plantar fasciitis, ranging from icing the area to prescription drugs, and all the way to surgery, involving the partial to full release of the plantar fascia. These therapies are sometimes helpful to address the inflammation and degeneration that occurs to the plantar fascia, but all they can offer is a relief of the symptoms. The true cause of the damage in the first place is the excessive inward rotation of the foot as a direct result of talotarsal dislocation. As such, until this root cause is corrected, the symptoms on the plantar fascia are bound to return and worsen.
Often times, the partially torn fibers may rupture on their own, which can give the impression that this condition is self-healing or that it will just go away after a prolonged period of ?conservative care?. This is simply not the case, since at this point the plantar fascia is no longer serving its intended function to support the arch of the foot and assist in the walking cycle. A ruptured plantar fascia places a tremendous strain on the tibial posterior tendon. Eventually, the tibial posterior tendon also becomes affected and yet another disease process has resulted as a direct effect from not addressing the root of the problem, talotarsal dislocation.
We invite you to learn more about talotarsal dislocation and about HyProCure, a permanent, minimally invasive solution that corrects the problem at its root.
