Plantar fasciitis is the most common injury we see as Pedorthists and certainly the most common injury we see to the foot. If you have had a bad enough case of plantar fasciitis you are more than likely familiar with its painful symptoms. But what exactly is the plantar fascia and how does it become damaged?

Basically, it is a band of tissue that originates on the inside of the heel, and attaches to the toes. Its purpose is to support the arch and act like a spring during walking and running. Overstraining of the plantar fascia can result in micro-tearing and inflammation of the fascia, which usually results in pain. Classic plantar fasciitis symptoms involve pain on the inside of the heel and arch, often times after your first few steps out of bed in the morning or after you have been off your feet for an extended period of time. Usually the pain reduces as your foot warms up after a few minutes of walking. This start-up pain occurs because when we are off our feet the plantar fascia is in it shortest position, and becomes tight. Standing up suddenly and walking puts instant strain on this shortened fascia and this when a lot of the damage occurs.

There is no one root cause of this injury but there are a significant number of contributing factors that are believed to play a role in its development. It is commonly understood that over pronation, or inward rolling of the foot, and arch collapse lead to increased strain on the plantar fascia. This is one of the first things we look for as clinicians when plantar fascia symptoms arise. However, a high arched, more rigid foot, can also develop plantar fascia pain. This is likely because high arched feet often have shorter, tighter plantar fascia tissue to begin with, and the fascia then absorbs too much force too quickly when weight-bearing. We often see tight calf musculature along with plantar fasciitis symptoms. Having tight calves does not necessarily cause plantar fasciitis but it will certainly put more tension along plantar fascia potentially contributing to damage. Plantar fasciitis can also just develop as an overuse injury and may be a case of running with too much intensity and/or duration.

A detailed assessment and gait analysis from one of our Canadian Certified Pedorthists http://www.pedorthic.ca/  is very important to determine the factors that may be contributing to your symptoms and to properly determine the best treatment plan. Check out our next blog on how to treat plantar fasciitis.