On Monday, we discussed the condition of plantar fasciitis, its causes and symptoms. If you haven’t already, please take a look at that article before reading this one as it gives an insight into how one might get the condition in the first place and how it feels. Monday’s article was designed to help you understand the condition and whether you have it or not, today’s article is going to be about when to see your GP and the prevention and treatment methods.
As we said on Monday, it is vital that you confirm that you have the condition before you begin any treatments at home. Failing to do this might result in you doing more damage to another condition. Finding the underlying problem to the pain in your foot is very important as there is so much going on in your foot, you can quite easily cause more damage and more pain if you do exercises not designed for your condition.
When should you see the doctor?
You should see your podiatrist or your GP if you have felt a persistent pain in your heel for a number of weeks. A podiatrist will examine your foot, ask you a few questions about your medical history and your symptoms. From there, they can diagnose the condition that you have and get you the help that you need.
Further tests for this condition are only ever really needed if you have any other additional symptoms that we didn’t discuss on Monday. It is vital that you tell your podiatrist about every single symptom that you have so they can recommend the correct treatment for the correct condition.
Other symptoms that might suggest the condition you have isn’t plantar fasciitis can include:
Your foot feeling hot – this could be a sign of a bone infection
A stiff, swollen heel – this could be a sign of arthritis
Tingling and numbness – this could be a sign of nerve damage
If your podiatrist suspects that you have one of the conditions mentioned above, they may request further tests like x-rays, MRI scans or ultrasound scans to confirm their suspicions.
The treatment and prevention methods for plantar fasciitis
There are a number of treatments that can completely take the pain away from plantar fasciitis. One of the most effective treatments of the condition is stretching the tissue. The plantar fascia responds very well to the stretching of the calf muscles and also of the band of tissue itself. Basically, because the tissue thickens with the condition, stretching it can thin it out again and make it supple once more.
There are plenty of other treatments available for plantar fasciitis including rest, using supportive devices in your shoes, wearing better fitting shoes, losing weight and painkillers. These also work great as prevention methods. The method that is best for your foot condition depends on what the podiatrist finds during their examination. In most cases of plantar fasciitis, your heel pain will usually be resolved in about a year.
If you think you have plantar fasciitis and would like to see one of our podiatrists, make an appointment with us today. We are always more than happy to help with any foot condition and get you back on your feet.