Plantar Fasciitis and Chiropractic

Disclaimer: No individuals, including those under our active care, should use the information, resources or tools contained in this article to self-diagnose or self-treat any health-related condition. Diagnosis and treatment of all health conditions should only be performed by your doctor of Chiropractic or other licensed health care professional.

Do your first few steps out of bed in the morning cause severe pain in your heel? Or does the bottom of your foot or heel hurt after running or climbing stairs? You may very well have plantar fasciitis.

Did you know that chiropractic care can be an effective solution for plantar fasciitis? Chiropractic therapies such as Active Release Techniques (A.R.T.) target the soft tissues. If the moving parts of the foot and ankle are able to move through a normal full range, the stress on the plantar fascia is kept to a minimum. Chiropractic treatment by a certified ART provider gets to the root of the problem by freeing up restrictions in the involved muscles and joints. Increasing flexibility of the calf muscles is particularly important. The A.R.T. protocols can correct functional risk factors such as tightness of the gastroc-soleus and weakness of the intrinsic foot muscles. If you begin treatment soon after the onset of your pain or diagnosis, you have an excellent chance of full recovery and can prevent plantar fasciitis from reoccurring.

Foot pain is a very common problem in both athletes and non-athletes, often caused by inflammation of the plantar fascia—the tissue along the bottom of your foot that connects your heel bone to your toes, helping to maintain the stability of your foot and support the longitudinal arch. Plantar fasciitis causes burning, stabbing or aching pain that’s usually worse in the morning as the fascia of the foot often tightens overnight. Once your foot limbers up, the symptoms normally decrease but may return after exercise, after long periods of standing, or after getting up from sitting.

Your plantar fascia normally supports the arch in your foot, acting like a shock-absorbing bowstring. If the tension on the bowstring is too great, small tears in the fascia can occur which may become irritated or inflamed, with swelling, local tenderness, and pain with standing or walking. Plantar fasciitis usually develops gradually in only one foot, but symptoms can also be sudden and severe, and sometimes affect both feet.

It is estimated that there are nearly 2 million newly diagnosed cases of plantar fasciitis each year in the U.S. Common causes include an overload of physical activity such as long distance running or starting an aggressive training program, faulty foot mechanics that create an abnormal pattern of walking, and improper shoes that don’t support or absorb shock to protect your feet. Some types of arthritis can cause inflammation of the tendons underneath your foot, and people with diabetes seem more susceptible to plantar fasciitis.

About 5-10% of all running injuries are inflammations of the fascia, with accompanying problems that include leg length discrepancy, inflexibility of the longitudinal arch, tightness of the gastroc-soleus, wearing shoes without sufficient arch support, a lengthened stride during running, and running on soft surfaces.1

References: 1) Arnheim, Prentice, 2002. Essentials of Athletic Training, fifth edition.