Plantar Fasciitis, also known as Policeman’s heel, is a condition that causes excruciating pain in the heel and underneath the foot. The plantar fascia is a piece of tissue that connects your heel bone to your toes and supports the arch of your foot. The plantar fascia can become inflamed (weak, swollen, irritated) if it is strained, which in turn, creates pain in the bottom of your foot and/or your heel when you walk.
About 10% of people will have plantar fasciitis at some point in their life and is the most common injury of the plantar fascia. People that endure long periods of standing and have extreme inward rolling of the foot will be more likely to be affected by plantar fasciitis.
So What is Plantar Fasciitis?
If you have the following symptoms, you may have Plantar Fasciitis
- Pain in the arch of your foot
- Heel pain in the morning
- Tight calves
- Swelling in the foot
- Limitation in movement
Plantar fasciitis is the third most common injury for runners
It’s very important to recognize signs of plantar fasciitis symptoms as its a common inflammatory disorder that can affect a wide range of individuals. People who are used to standing for prolonged periods of time, athletes who tend to make sudden movements, foot twist or wrong landing on their feet are at higher risks too.
In addition; the ability to identify plantar fasciitis symptoms would increase patient’s chances in avoiding further damages to plantar fascia ligaments, accelerating his healing process.
What causes plantar fasciitis to flare up?
Below are the main clinical symptoms that are connected to plantar fasciitis:
Pain in arch of foot
This is considered the main sign of plantar fasciitis arising from inflammation occurring in the plantar fascia ligaments. Continuous stress or severe shock on the ligaments can easily lead to injury. Applied pressure on the ligaments can also cause weakness. Strained ligaments tend to be irritated, shortened and inflamed.
Patients describe the pain to be at the heel of the foot, moving down the affected foot towards the toes as the ligaments branch into five subcategories, connecting each toe with the heel. Pain can be unilateral (in one foot) or bilateral (in both feet) and pain is usually stronger while undertaking physical examination, climbing up stairs, standing or sitting for prolonged periods of times, walking on ones tippy toes or if taking a step first thing in the early morning.
Heel stiffness in the morning
Heel stiffness and pain in the arch of foot can reach a high degree of pain once the affected foot touches the floor when getting out of bed. This is because the plantar fascia ligaments have become shorter during the night as a result of being in a steady position for a prolonged period of time.
This causes the heel to become stiff, limiting its normal range of motion. It is considered a sharp move when trying to stand up and taking a step forward, which can then create an unexpected stretch to the sole of the foot, triggering inflammation in the ligaments and the surrounding soft tissues, forcing them to stretch and expand, evoking severe pain in the arch of the foot and in the stiffened heel.
Pain can be minimized after taking a few slow steps while the ligaments start to become flexible; getting some lengthening degree with every move allowing the pain intensity to ease.
Swelling in the foot
The affected foot with the strained plantar fascia ligaments is noticed to have a degree of swelling that is corresponding to the nature of the patient’s medical condition. Swelling is a normal result of the inflammation process, happening as a result of minor tears or shortening of the weakened ligaments. Inflammation causes fluids to escape from the surrounding soft tissues and small blood capillaries then gather and localize at the heel area. The escaped fluids tend to apply pressure on the small nerve endings causing pain. The end result is pain in the arch of foot, pain in the heel of foot, tenderness, localized edema and losing some degree of the normal flexibility.
Experiencing different pain levels
People may experience different pain episodes throughout the day. Its common to feel a dull pain while performing daily physical activities, even with everyday activities such as standing or walking. However, pain can increase once these activities have come to an end and have been described as a burning or stabbing sensation. The reason for this is that the ligaments gain some flexibility and tend to loosen a little bit while moving around with natural foot movement.
This aids in releasing some of the heel stiffness, decreasing some of the shortness degree acquired by the ligaments that help in easing the pain in the arch of foot. Unfortunately, pain starts to return with more severity after finishing the activities performed as the inflammation rises at the weak ligament area due to pressure and stress they have been exposed to, causing the return of the painful sensation in greater levels localized under the heel, and radiating along the running ligaments until the toes.
Limitation of movement
As a result of the above plantar fasciitis symptoms, people with plantar fasciitis will suffer from their inability to move or walk normally. The inflammation occurring at the heel area can lead to stiffness making it difficult for the patient to take normal steps. Some patients may have to limp, especially in the morning, after standing for long periods of time or sitting at a disk then attempting to move. This affects people that remain stationary during their work hours. (ie. a desk job).
32 Million Americans will suffer from Plantar Fasciitis within their lifetime
Some plantar fasciitis sufferers tend to limp if their condition is severe. If a patient has ignored their medical advice, symptoms may worsen which will delay the natural healing process and the expected recovery. Further to that, ignoring plantar fasciitis syndrome may permanently affect the someones movement and in addition to the risks of affecting other joints, you may develop knee, hip or back problems as a result.
What causes plantar fasciitis to flare up?
There can be a range of different things that cause plantar fasciitis to flare up, such as:
- Standing for long periods
- Running middle to long distances
- Excess weight
- Participating in sport such as football or basketball
- Wearing flip flops
- Wearing bad footwear without good support
Diagnosis of plantar fasciitis
If you have found yourself experiencing any or some of the plantar fasciitis symptoms mentioned above, the best thing to do is visit a medical professional.
You should consult your doctor if you are experiencing continuous pain in the arch of the foot especially if it continuous and not feeling any better after applying RICE (rest, ice, compression and elevation) or with taking any over the counter medication such as Ibuprofen.
Your doctor will be looking for signs of inflammation around the affected foot while flexing the area and applying a degree of pressure on the plantar fascia ligaments in order to detect any pain, tenderness or edema. You may be asked to take a few steps to observe your way of movement. When discussing plantar fasciitis symptoms, be honest about the pain you feel.
If you experience intense pain as soon as getting out of bed in the morning, then this is a sign of plantar fasciitis and must be treated. One way to confirm if someone has plantar fasciitis is to point your toes upward towards your shin. You will feel pain running along the bottom of your foot to your heel if plantar fasciitis is prevalent.
A medical expert will be your best bet in finding out if you have ruptured your planta fascia. They will press firmly on the underside of your foot to test for pain. They may suggest an X-ray, however, diagnosis can usually be done by asking the right questions, by examining the foot and by watching you walk.
