I was diagnosed with Plantar Facitiis in Aug. 2005. I had the typical heel pain first thing in the a.m. when I stepped out of bed, which I endured for about 6 mo. before I sought medical attention with a podiatrist. Since Aug., I have had 3 cortisone injections, have been to therapy for stretching exercises, which I do and they work, wear orthodics in my tennis shoes and wear a night splint to keep my foot straight at night, which also helps. If I wear the tennis shoes with the orthodics all the time, the pain goes away, but if I try to wear any other shoes, even with an arch support, the pain returns. I am not a tennis shoe person and only wore these to heal the problem, with hopes that I could return to my regular shoes some day. I would have the surgery if I thought it would relieve the pain, allow me to wear regular shoes and not have after-effects, which include a weak ankle and the possibility of falling, turning your ankle. Please give your opinion and suggestions. Thank you.

I recommend that you wear the tennis shoe and orthotics combo a little longer after the pain goes away about 6 weeks, then try different shoes.

Also you should be able to find shoes that are like tennis shoes that don't look like tennis shoes.

New Balance for one is coming out with a comfort line of shoes, check them out.

Dear SPG
It sounds like you are improving. Have you thought of using your orthotics in other shoes? They may not fit if they are sports orthotics, so you may actually need to get another pair of orthotics used for dress shoes. That is an option that you may want to explore. Healing and finally resolving plantar fasciitis takes time. Other alternatives prior to surgery would be extracorpreal shock wave therapy.

Good-luck and thank-you for contacting foot.com,
Sbarlizo, DPM, CPed
foot.com expert

Hello
I too have suffered with PF.It has only been about a month and a half but it is something that is slowly driving me out of my mind! I have tried everything but the night splint. It is something that I am curious about and wonder if it really does work .So far the people that I have talked to say that it is not giving them the results that they hoped for. I know each person is different but I am still curious. It is not cheap and I am trying to get more research about it before I invest the money. Also is there any other thing that one can do maybe?I would love to hear from someone out there! So far this is the things that I have done:
(1). Rubbing ice cubes on the spot
(2). Heat massage
(3). Towel wrapped and stretching
(4). Leg lifts and exercising
(5). Ibuprophen
(6). Ice baths
(7). Professional massage
(8). Arch supports
(9). Heel supports
(10). Elevating at night
(11). New shoes with built in support(nurses shoes)
(12). Bio-feedback

Great list unfornate it has not worked

I would added a strait leg stretch lift the toes toward your nose three to five times per day 30-60 secs each leg kind of like the towel stretch with no towel.

Night splints can range price from cheap to quite expensive. $60 this site $40 - $100 footsmart.com search around.

They help stretch foot all night. You could also try wearing your shoes to bed, sleeping on your stomach with your feet over the edge.

Look at the way you walk are your a hard walker? Do your pound your heels?

Hope this helps

Get well soon

Dear Ladyfish
It is important to have realistic goals and expectations. Unfortunately, it can take several months for the pain to completely resolve. Be patient, it will take time to fully return to "normal". Night splints can help to stretch the gastrocsoleus muscle while sleeping. Resolution of symptoms result from a combination of different therapies and treatment approaches.

Good-luck and thank-you for contacting foot.com,
SBarlizo, DPM, C Ped
foot.com expert

I feel your pain, i have be using ice, exercises, and in the morning and at the end of the day at work i feel like tearing my foot off. I don"t know what to do.

I had planters fasciitis and it went away when I started wearing birkenstocks. Alternating hot and cold with 2 minute increments also helps relieve the pain. So give that a try and good luck. My pain however, has returned 3 years later and nothing seems to help me. In fact , the pain came back same as before then moved to the top of my foot almost like a spasm that won't go away. Has anyone every experienced this? I would appreciate any suggestions.

Hello! My heel pain, although I've had it for more than 6 months now, was actually just diagnosed today! I have been wearing Crocs for about 2 years now and spend a great deal of time on my feet. The Crocs are the only shoe I'm able to wear for any length of time. If I try anything else for more than just a few minutes I can hardly walk later that day or the next. I am an RN and am no longer able to work in that capacity due to the heel pain. In fact, I'm unemployed and wondering what in the heck I'm going to do. Do you know of or have you heard of anyone getting diability benefits due to Plantar Fashiitis? I'm going to check into that as I'm only about 4 1/2 years away from retirement anyway, but don't know how much luck I'll have. I live in a very rural area of Kansas with not many job options, am totally dependent on my ability to earn income, and have no idea what I'm going to do! I obviously haven't tried any of the treatments, but it seems from what I've read and what the doctor said that I'm in a rather advanced stage of the "disease" process and one nurse I talked with who has tried every treatment they've recommended, including even being casted for several weeks, states nothing really helps. What do you think? I'd appreciate your response. Thanks, M Also, what type of surgery are you referring to? Nothing was mentioned to me about surgery this morning....

Dear Hatinthepain, Karen and Guest,
Typically if a patient presents with heel pain the approach is usually a combination of stretching the achilles tendon and gastrocsoleus muscle, icing on and off at 10-15 min intervals, rest, elevation, physical therapy, wearing proper shoe gear, orthotics, oral medication and/or immobilization(if the patient is in extreme pain). Extracorpreal shockwave therapy (ECSWT), is also used to treat recalcitrant heel pain, however, some insurances require that the patient have at least six months of documented conservative treatment prior to ECSWT. Unfortunately, ECSWT is sometimes not a covered service under certain insurance plans and/or may require prior authorization, so, it is important to discuss this with your doctor and insurance company prior to the procedure. 85-90% of patients respond to conservative management, so, surgery is considered the last resort in the treatment plan.
I would recommend that you all follow-up with a Podiatrist for an evaluation, establish a treatment plan and go from there.

Good-luck and thank-you for contacting foot.com,
SBarlizo, DPM, C Ped
foot.com expert

Hello all, I went to a foot Dr. and he made me an insert for one shoe. This was two months ago. It has helped some,but there are some days it is all I can do to go to the bathroom. Heel Spurs are ruining my life. I dread having corizone injections,As I have heard you are in worse pain several days after and they don't last anyway. there are advertisments on the web for products that disslove these nasty spurs.Has anyone tried them?

Dear Starz
I would recommend that you stay with conventional forms of therapy, such as stretching the gastrocsoleus and achilles tendon, wearing orthotics and proper shoe gear, intermittent icing (15 mins on 15 mins off 2 times per day), and physical therapy. I would be weary of any product that claims to "dissolve heel spurs". A heel spur is a bony projection and I highly doubt that an over the counter product has the ability to dissolve bone, however, if it does, stay far away from it , because it may cause more harm than good.

Good-luck and thank-you for contacting foot.com,
Sbarlizo, DPM, C Ped
foot.com expert

Hello everyone. I've been suffering from PF for almost 3 yrs. My Dr. and many others said it usually doesn't last more than a year, but.... I've done the stretches, splint, shoe inserts, bought new sneakers every 6 mos., and still no relief. Dr. looked again and listened to me describe the pain and decided he could not do a cortisone shot, because my pain isn't in my heel, it's pretty much right in the middle of the arch (actually a sigh of relief for me). Anyway I'm at my wits end, my wife is really tired of my complaints, and it's affecting my marriage because I can't keep up, play golf, sports, etc.

I read from one site that 80% of PF cases are mental caused by stress and I wonder if there is any validity in that statement. I've been slacking on the exercises because I'm not getting results and I now take Darvocet to try to kill pain, which I don't want to continue. Dr. also said there's no real surgical option without heel pain (spurs) to remove and he can't just go in and slice the tendon, obviously. I've got very thin skin on the bottom of my feet and the tendon always feels very tight to the touch. I'm now wearing shoes so much that my feet are extremely sensitive, I can't walk barefoot much and even shower water hitting them makes me cringe (not pain, sensitivity). I also seem to have lost some balance, I reach for support when I never used to. I'm so over this.

Seems my only option is a second opinion, in Miami, which is 170 miles away. Any suggestions appreciated, thank you for reading.

Pain, sensitvity, lose of balance can be due to neuropathy. That indicates other problems than the foot, circuitor or back for starters.

Check out Prolotherapy instead of surgery.

Hope this helps

Thank you. I had a full, across the board blood test maybe 6 months ago for my own curiosity and I'm not diabetic. I was a bit low on potassium but otherwise ok.

Dear Manthathurts
Statistically, most patients with heel pain usually experience a resolution of symptoms approximately 85-90% of the time. Usually the approach to plantar fasciitis is a combination of physical therapy, stretching icing, wearing proper shoe gear, orthotics, injection therapy and anti-inflammatories (as prescribed by your medical doctor). If the pain persists after 6 months another option would be Extracorpreal Shock Wave Therapy, this is not recommended for everyone and there are some contraindications, so this option should be discussed in detail with your doctor. The final option is surgery, this usually entails, releasing a portion of the plantar fascia and can be performed endoscopically or open. Excising the "heel spur" has fallen out of vogue at this time because, theoretically, it is usually not the "spur" that causes the pain. 50% of people with heel spurs do not have heel pain and 50% of people without heel spurs do experience heel pain. Unless the heel spur is severely enormous, fractured or infected, surgery is not performed. I would recommend that you seek a second opinion.

Good-luck and thank-you for contacting foot.com,
SBarlizo, DPM, C Ped
foot.com expert

Thanks Doc, I will. Quick question--the orthotics sold to me by my DPM here are 2 yrs old, but they are hard and I don't think they've changed shape. If I ordered ones with a higher arch, would that help stretch the tendon? And increase speed of therapy?

Dear Manthathurts
I think that it would be a good idea to bring your old orthotics to your doctor to be evaluated. It's hard to say if getting orthotics which are made with a higher arch would help you. Your doctor will have to made that decision based on your physical examination.

Good-luck and thank-you for contacting foot.com,
Sbarlizo, DPM, C Ped
foot.com expert

If you have classic plantar fasciitis, if you want to add -- I would recommend a night splint. Instead of over building an arch.

Thank you both.