Plantar Fasciitis: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment Options

Plantar fasciitis may cause you a great deal of pain or interfere with your ability to walk normally in some cases. However, at Hamilton Foot Care, Corey Bess, Doctor of Podiatric Medicine, Chiropodist, serving Hamilton, ON, and the nearby regions, is available to help. Before seeing us, you may want to know if you have it, what caused it, and what treatment options are available.

Symptoms  

The most common symptom of plantar fasciitis is a dull or sharp pain on the bottom of a foot near the heel. This pain may worsen in the morning and gradually lessen throughout the day. If the pain is severe enough, it could impact your walking ability. 

Heel stiffness is also possible, affecting you as you walk upstairs.

Causes

Though there isn't always a definitive reason you develop plantar fasciitis, it's often from overusing, overstretching, or tearing the plantar fascia — the band of tissue running from your toes to your heel. It serves the purpose of supporting your arch.

Runners and overweight people are more likely than the average to develop this condition. We often see it in active people aged 40 to 70. Due to changes in foot structure, hormones, and weight gain, it's also a common issue in pregnant women. It's more common during the last trimester than the first two.

Wearing unsupportive footwear also increases your chances because your feet will feel more of the impact as you move, and inadequate arch support exasperates strain on this area.

Treatment

Plantar fasciitis treatment in Hamilton, ON, may vary depending on the severity. Our goal is to help you avoid surgery if possible. Therefore, we try to take conservative measures based on a physical examination and imaging results.

When at-home treatments are a feasible solution, we may recommend that you wear custom-made orthotics to adequately support the tissue. We can also help you find supportive shoes. Physical therapy, which consists of guiding you through foot exercises, may also be recommended to help heal and strengthen the tissue.

As noted, surgery is a last resort and may include either lengthening your calf muscle to improve your ankle's range of motion and ease the strain on the plantar fascia or cutting a part of the tissue to release stress.

At Hamilton Foot Care, Corey Bess, Doctor of Podiatric Medicine, Chiropodist, serving Hamilton, ON, and the neighboring communities, offers surgical and non-surgical solutions, such as custom orthotics, physical therapy, and supportive footwear, to help if you're having foot pain from plantar fasciitis.

Call 905-389-9711 for an appointment.