Question for any orthopedics or physical therapists on the board..

[Jeffro]

Hi all,

So I figured I'd take a shot in the dark on this.. I noticed in the RG3 thread there seemed to be some knowledgeable people around orthopedics and physical therapists and the like so figured I would ask here..

For the last 4 years I've had terrible heel/foot pain in only my left foot, it was diagnosed as plantar fasciitis and I was told to do exercises, roll foot on frozen water bottles, get custom made orthotics and have cortisone injections.. I attempted that for two years and the only relief I ever had was for about a 2-3 week period after cortisone shots and then it went back to the same thing. My symptoms were very painful joint/foot/heel after periods of non-weight bearing, after about 20 minutes of standing I had very pronounced pain in my foot from my ankle to my toes, after high levels of activity the most intense pain was actually lifting up my foot and taking weight off it which trigger very intense pain.


So after getting no relief for three years I decided to switch doctors to someone who was very highly regarded for foot/heel pain and surgery and was asked to have a non-contrast MRI which showed moderate plantar fasciitis, heel spur and a rupture on the plantar fasciitis at the heel. The doctor reviewed everything I had done and recommended partial plantar fasciitis release. I was very nervous about doing this for multiple reasons.. 1) There are tremendous amounts of horror stories about this surgery and the fact that it can make things worse 2) This doctor wanted to do it open and wanted non-weight bearing for a full month followed by 50% for 2 weeks which is a lot of downtime.. After mulling it over I decided to proceed forward and had surgery in Sept.

After surgery the doctor said that he thought it went really well, that I should have relief, a full recovery and that he had fixed an entrapped a nerve. In terms of recovery, I never had any pain at all. I never took a single pain pill or anything.. was in a soft cast for a week while incision healed then a hard cast for 3 weeks then a walking boot @ 50% weight for 2 weeks.

Needless to say, nothing has improved.. if anything my foot hurts more quickly when load bearing and I have more pain associated with the top of my foot on the bones leading to my 3rd - 5th toes than I had pre-surgery. I also have pain when flexing my foot as if I'm pointing with my toes. The doctor prescribed me 6 weeks of physical therapy 2-3 times a week at my last post op appointment but I haven’t been able to go due to my work travel schedule..

That said, I've got a few questions..

1) What are the chances that physical therapy will help anything?
2) Anyone have any ideas on resolution or been through anything similar themselves?

So damn tired of pain every step I take and now my right knee is starting to kill me because I think I'm off balance with my weight distribution.

[Corcaigh]

I have no idea what your condition is but I'm a big believer in physical therapy. I've seen many runners go down the road of custom orthotics, surgery, injections (including botox, believe it or not), but getting your feet stronger is always the remedy unless there is genuinely a structural (rather than a functional weakness) problem. I've had minor PF and foot exercises and wearing Nike Frees has helped strengthen my feet to where I do very well on foot flexibility, strength and balance tests.

Favoring one part of your body can easily lead to stresses elsewhere

[China]

Well clearly you have terminal idiopathic plantar allodynia.

My condolences.









/Seriously, people should know better than to seek medical advice on the internet.

[Jeffro]

Well clearly you have terminal idiopathic plantar allodynia.

My condolences.









/Seriously, people should know better than to seek medical advice on the internet.

I guess I should have known a jackass would enter the picture.. I'm not seeking medical advise per say.. Just looking for some thoughts from non-jackasses who might have experienced the same thing or who work in the physical therapy field.. it's not like I asked how to treat cancer.

[China]

You are seeking medical advice.

[Stadium-Armory]

I'm no doctor but plantars is near and dear to me as I've been dealing with it for a few years now.

Stretching regularly keeps mine under control. I'm sure you've tried stretching and such but I will just say it for the sake of it that in my experience you can't do enough calf, hamstring and foot stretches. If I do the thing with the towel twice a day, I'm good to go. If I get lazy with it, it creeps back.

[GoSkins561]

I'm no doctor but plantars is near and dear to me as I've been dealing with it for a few years now.

If I stretch religiously, its great. I'm sure you've tried stretching and such but I will just reiterate that in my experience you can't do enough calf, foot stretches. If I do the thing with the towel twice a day, I'm good to go. If I get lazy with it, it creeps back.

Dealing with plantars right now, could you put up some links to some stretches? I was running half marathons last year, now I can't run at all, it's pissing me off.

---------- Post added January-9th-2013 at 06:27 PM ----------

You are seeking medical advice.

He is, BUT, I am sure there are plenty of people who deal with plantars on the board, it's a pain in the butt.

[Jeffro]

Dealing with plantars right now, could you put up some links to some stretches? I was running half marathons last year, now I can't run at all, it's pissing me off.

---------- Post added January-9th-2013 at 06:27 PM ----------



He is, BUT, I am sure there are plenty of people who deal with plantars on the board, it's a pain in the butt.

These are the most effective stretches http://uhs.berkeley.edu/home/healtht...0Fasciitis.pdf

[JMUSkins]

Is this really Redskins related? I know a lot of folks on here think they're experts, but I'd go see a real doctor.

Edit: My bad... thought I was in the Stadium.... still.. see your own doctor

[GoSkins561]

These are the most effective stretches http://uhs.berkeley.edu/home/healtht...0Fasciitis.pdf

Have you tried massage therapy?

[Jeffro]

Have you tried massage therapy?

Not yet, I'm running behind on my starting my PT since I was out of work for a month and a half with surgery so thought I would try PT and massage at the same time since they do both at my PT. Was just looking for some reassurance on PTs ability to help.. never had an injury or surgery that required it before.. as you know.. I'm desperate for any relief..

PF is a *****.. LOL

[Bang]

I have it as well, when it flares up it can be severely painful around my heel, arch and top of my big toe.. it can knock me over..

I play tennis, and I bought some orthotics from new Balance, and I also bought New Balance 804 shoes, which are recommended for plantar fasciitis and heel issues.. motion control, extra support and compression around your heel
Amazon link
if you don't mind walking around in tennis shoes, they're very comfortable.

The best thing i can tell you is to buy a sleeping boot. i did, and the pain decreased considerably.
Sleeping Boot
I bought this one, and it works wonders in making sure the day doesn't start right off with a new strain and tear. You notice how much it hurts when you get up in the morning? the boot keeps your foot and heel in proper place to allow it to stretch properly rather than allow the inflammation to settle in around the fascia in an unnatural position while you sleep.
It didn't take too long to get used to. The futuro brand thing or that sock thing you might see on that page don't work for diddly.
I get up in the morning, pop the boot off, rotate my ankle a few times to relax it, and no pain when i get up.

After about 3 months, I'm back to playing tennis once a week, and I am running about 90%. I deal with some soreness afterward, but it has definitely gotten markedly better. I played 3 hours over the weekend and felt great afterward,, relatively speaking. Sore, but not in pain.
Actually, with the weather this week, i could probably play two or 3 times.

You can strengthen it by mimicking the motion you make when you pick something up with your toes. I also find that wrapping it tight with some mesh athletic tape before i play tennis (or a long drive.. man, that can be painful) works well. The mesh stuff sticks to itself, and you can wrap around the heel pretty tightly without having to immobilize your ankle with a big Ace bandage.

~Bang

[Corcaigh]

Dealing with plantars right now, could you put up some links to some stretches?

http://www.runningahead.com/forums/t...b5a7b5828f98e0 - check the second post pasted from Pete Magill's old site. Good stuff.

[GoSkins561]

http://www.runningahead.com/forums/t...b5a7b5828f98e0 - check the second post pasted from Pete Magill's old site. Good stuff.

Thanks Homie, was using the Went from, Gel Nimbus (no issues), to Kinvara (minor achilles issues on long runs) to Altras(plantars) , so my question is, when I start running again, which one would you start with?

Everything I have read suggests going with the Altras, almost purchased the Nimbus last week because I am getting pissed, stopped myself though.

[Jumbo]

http://www.extremeskins.com/showthre...st-quot-thread