PLANTAR FASCIITIS

Plantar fasciitis can often be healed naturally through structural support provided by custom foot orthotics and appropriate footwear.

Plantar fasciitis can often be healed naturally through structural support provided by a combination of effective custom foot orthotics and appropriate footwear. 
 
Pedorthics is a non-invasive, conservative modality that can be applied or discontinued, re-evaluated and adjusted, at anytime. It consists of shoes, custom foot orthotics and in some cases, orthopedic modifications to shoes. 
 
Boston Pedorthic is the exclusive U.S. manufacturers of a precise, highly responsive custom foot orthotic. You receive a detailed assessment that gives you more knowledge about your individual foot than you imagined possible. The result is a footwear strategy that really works, usually costing less than the competition, and giving you renewed vigor for your walking comfort and sports performance. 

WHAT IS PLANTAR FASCIITIS?

The mechanics of injury that produces acute or chronic plantar fasciitis generally stems from tensile stress of the plantar fasca produced from dynamic weight bearing in walking or running gait during normal walking, running or other forms of impact on the foot. 
 
The plantar fascia lacks flexibility and can easily be stressed beyond the limits of its natural range of flexibility, known as "tensile tissue stress." 
 
Continual tensile tissue stress of the plantar fascia can produce the pain associated with the variety of presentations of diagnosed plantar fasciitis, seen by doctors, therapists and pedorthists. 
 
Plantar fasca are connective tissue impacted on the weight bearing surface of the foot. The effected tissue stress of plantar fasciitis is the inflammation of the plantar aponeurosis, also known as plantar fasciitis. The plantar aponeurosis, known as plantar facia are three fibrous bands of connective tissues that collectively originate at the tubercal site on the anterior section of the heel bone. Often times, this site on the heel is diagnosed as a painful heel spur, with associated inflammation of the fascia tissue. The plantar fasciitis arises from the tubercal of the calcaneous and passes forward to where the fascial bands insert into the base of the proximal phalanx of each toe. Persistent fasciitis should be diagnosed and understood by a qualified physician for specific complications surrounding a case of plantar fasciitis.

PROCLIVITY TOWARD PLANTAR FASCIITIS

Plantar fasciitis can occur in a well formed, neutral, normal looking aligned foot. However, plantar fasciitis is normally associated with hypermobility or excessive pronation or rigid, high arched feet. Sometimes, plantar fasciitis is directly connected to tight calf muscles and lack of flexibility of the Achilles tendon, limiting ankle motion. 
 
Whatever the underlying mechanical structural causes producing plantar fasciitis, clinical pedorthics strives to apply specific strategies available in footwear to stabilize the problem, improve comfort, diminish pain and return the patient to tolerating the desired activities diminished by plantar fasciitis.

PEDORTHIC MANAGEMENT OF PLANTAR FASCIITIS

Pedorthic management of plantar fasciitis contributes toward providing structural support of the foot that can reduce the repetitive trauma of tensile stress on the plantar fascia. 
 
Generally speaking, the structure of a well designed, accurately modeled, and quality fabricated custom foot orthotic can provide a structure that mitigates the excessive forces produced on the weight bearing surface of the foot that are associated with the production of plantar fasciitis. 
 
A quality foot orthotic, combined with appropriately selected footwear can help toward healing micro tears and inflammation, among other problems associated with plantar fasciitis. 
 
Dependent upon the exact etiology of a specific case of plantar fasciitis, shoe modifications such as heel lifts and flares, wedges, rocker soles and other techniques can be helpful. 

BOSTON PEDORTHIC PROCESS FOR TREATMENT OF PLANTAR FASCIITIS

Working with each individual by appointment, the process at Boston Pedorthic begins with a questionnaire about the nature of the patient's chief complaint, followed by a detailed pedorthic assessment of the patient's overall medical condition, history and footwear. 
 
If the patient is to be fitted for custom foot orthotics, digital imaging of the foot in three dimensions is prepared. This consists of a scan of the foot as well as a thermal plastic mold, taking approximately 25 minutes. 
 
The shoe provides the structure for the orthotic, and careful selection contributes to the healing environment for reversing plantar fasciitis. Whether the patient brings their own shoes or selects new shoes, no pedorthic assessment is complete without education for the patient about shoe properties that work for the patient's foot type, and a discussion of strategies available to improve comfort and function. 
 
A second, short visit is scheduled to fit the finished orthotics once they are manufactured. Adjustments can be made at this time for maximum satisfaction. In fact, the device is entirely adjustable on all planes of motion. This is important to patients because some people find that their feet change over time and they can benefit from slight adjustments. 

HEALING FROM PLANTAR FASCIITIS

Some patients respond to pedorthic therapy quickly within a matter of a week or two, seeing substantial improvement with reduction of pain and a resumption of tolerating their desired activities. Others may require a month or more for therapeutic results to develop. If plantar fasciitis persists after the application of the structure and support provided by therapeutic footwear, than reassessment of extenuating reasons for persistent complaints should be assessed. 
 
In our clinical experience at Boston Pedorthic, we have witnessed many cases of plantar fasciitis resolve to the satisfaction of the patient suffering from chronic daily plantar fasciitis pain and satisfaction from athletes coping with disruptive, painful flare-ups during sports. 

BOSTON PEDORTHIC'S ADVANCED MANUFACTURING

Your custom foot orthotic is designed in a computer aided design environment by the same pedorthist who sees you. The device is milled using CNC milling and ground by hand to fit perfectly in the shoe (or shoes), and covered with a cushioning top cover. It starts with true, 3D optical imaging of the foot, and precision is maintained throughout the process. The material is EVA (ethyl vinyl acetate), a non-toxic foam, used in shoe manufacturing that is more generally tolerable than rigid plastic. 
 
The result is superior support of healthy joint alignment, superior capabilities to offload painful pressures, thorough coverage of the weight-bearing surface of the individual feet, and full integration of shoes for a complete therapeutic result. 
 
The foot is relieved of tensile stresses causing plantar fasciitis, so that the foot can begin to heal.