SPECIALIST HELP AND TREATMENT FOR PLANTAR FASCIITIS AT STATE 11 IN SPALDING, LINCOLNSHIRE

The foot is made up of twenty-six bones and 33 joints in each foot. On top of that, there are nineteen muscles and one hundred and seven ligaments.
 

Ligaments are strong connective tissues that connect bones to bones. The three main ligaments in the foot that can be linked to foot pain, heel pain or even ankle pain are the plantar fascia, the plantar calcaneonavicular ligament and the calcaneoocubiod ligament.

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• The plantar fascia is the main ligament involved in plantar fasciitis. It’s the longest ligament in the foot, and runs from the heel, along the sole of the foot to the toes, in a “bowstring” shape. Structurally, it forms the arch of the foot, and assists with balance and walking.
   

• The plantar calcanonavicular ligament joins the calcaneus (that’s the heel bone) to a bone called the navicular, which is a bone in the mid foot. It also helps support the head of the talus – the bone that makes up the ankle joint.
   

• The calcaneocubiod ligament joins the calcaneus to a bone called the cuboid, which (like the navicular) is a bone in the mid foot.

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Since the average person has covered around seventy-five thousand miles by the time they’re fifty years old, the odd injury shouldn’t be a major surprise, and plantar fasciitis is relatively common, although it can vary in severity and duration.

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In plantar fasciitis, inflammation and / or tiny tears to the plantar fascia cause pain in the area of the heel or slightly along the sole of the foot. The pain is generally worse first thing in the morning, after getting out of bed, and many people will describe it as a “stabbing” feeling in the heel.

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Moving around will often cause the pain to decrease or even vanish, but sitting for a long time and then standing, or standing for a long time, can cause the pain to return.

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The bowstring shape of the plantar fascia allows it to support the arch of the foot and act like a shock absorber. Whilst it performs this function very well, if the fascia undergoes too much stress or tension, small tears and inflammation can occur, which cause the pain so familiar to plantar fasciitis sufferers.

Unlike a muscle tear or a broken bone, there’s rarely one specific injury that someone with plantar fasciitis can point to as the cause of their injury. There are, however, factors that can put people more at risk of having the condition.

Age is one such factor – it is a condition most commonly seen in people between forty and sixty years old, and it is believed that being overweight can also be a factor.

Certain types of gait (the way you walk) and foot structure is also a possible risk factor. Flat feet (where the foot has a very low arch) or very high arches can stress the plantar fascia, because the weight of the body is distributed in an uneven pattern, which is also why certain types of gait can be an added risk factor.

Plantar fasciitis is also more common with certain types of sports or exercise that others – sports which put more stress on the heel such as ballet, some aerobics and long distance running can contribute to stress across the fascia.

Long periods of standing on hard surfaces has also been suggested as a risk factor for the condition.