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Plantar Fasciitis
Plantar Fasciitis is a condition which causes intense pain at the bottom of the feet as the result of the plantar facia becoming inflamed.
Cause of Plantar Fasciitis
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Plantar fasciitis is caused by the plantar fascia becoming inflamed. The plantar facia is a connective tissue which supports the arch of the foot. Changes in walking activity and biomechanics can suddenly place the plantar facia under greater loads than it is able to tolerate causing inflammation. The inflammation of the plantar facia is known as plantar fasciitis.
Symptoms
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Pain worse in the morning after sleeping (first few steps of the day, then suddenly becomes easier).
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Difficulty placing feet on the floor
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Stiffness and tightness on the underside of the feet
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Unable to stand or walk for long periods of time
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Difficulty raising toes off the floor
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Tightness in sole of feet, achilles tendon and calves
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Risk factors
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Wearing high heals
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Running on hard surfaces (indoor football)
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Tightness uff the plantar facia, achilles tendon or calves
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Lack of stretching
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Sudden increase in sporting activities
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High arches
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Wearing incorrect footwear
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Treatment
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Plantar fasciitis is a condition that can take up to 6 months and more to resolve. It is a condition that people ignore and gets worse over time when the underlying factors are not corrected.
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Physiotherapy-Physiofriend helps people with Plantar fasciitis manage and resolve their pain. At Physiofriend we can assess a person biomechanics and through a range of manual therapy techniques such as massage, biomechanics correction we can alleviate and prevent the reoccurrence of the plantar facia becoming inflamed.
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Ice- Ice is useful for reducing the amount of pain and inflammation that occurs in the plantar facia. When icing it is important not to place ice directly on the skin due to the risk of ice burns.
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Massage- Massage helps to reduce the amount of tightness in the plantar facia and reduce symptoms of pain. Massage helps to break down the thicker collagen fibres that are present after inflammation. Massage can be done by a therapist or self massage with a lacrosse ball.
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Stretching- Stretching similar to massage helps to reduce tightness in the plantar facia by stretching the muscle fibres. Stretching should be done regularly to gain benefits.
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