Simple Ways To Relieve Foot Pain

There are a lot of causes of foot pain and there are many factors that contribute to different types of foot pain. But the primary cause is using the wrong type of footwear, especially women with their high heels causing a lot of strain on the feet.

A lot of female patients suffer from a condition called Achilles tendinitis. This is foot pain usually felt behind the foot. When wearing high heels for long periods of time, the unusual position of the foot shortens the Achilles tendon. Now back at home, where the feet return to the normal position, a tightening effect or the stretching of the Achiilles tendon occurs causing some discomfort. Eventually, the prolonged use of these types of shoes can cause the Achilles tendon to be painful and inflamed.

Another common cause of foot pain is plantar fasciitis. This is due to the injury or inflammation of the plantar fascia. The plantar fascia is a strong fibrous tissue found under the foot, and is responsible for maintaining the arch of the foot. For this reason, the plantar fascia is constantly under stress when walking or running. That’s why this structure is always prone to injury causing mild to severe foot pain.

In cases of foot pain, the first thing that can be done is the RICE method:

REST

Allowing the foot to rest is the primary goal to relieve pain and also treating the injury causing the pain. Taking pain relievers is not recommended because it masks the pain, allowing you to use your foot, which can further cause injury. 

ICE

Applying cold stimuli to the injured foot can decrease the pain and swelling. 

COMPRESS

Wrapping the foot with an elastic bandage helps immobilize the foot, this helps in the healing process. Also, it helps in controlling swelling.

ELEVATE

Lastly, if the foot is really swollen, raising the foot above the heart can prevent pooling of bodily fluids on the affected foot.

Heel Pain: Causes and Treatment

Heel pain is probably the most common foot pathology. It is estimated 100,000 individuals in the United States suffer from this condition. In most cases, acute heel pain is simple, easy and affordable to treat. Unfortunately, a lot of people have the wrong approach in heel pain management and treatment, and this could lead to chronic heel pain.

Causes Of Heel Pain

There are a lot of conditions that can cause heel pain but the common culprits are plantar fasciitis and Achilles tendinitis.

Plantar fasciitis is due to overstretching of the plantar fascia causing multiple microscopic tears along the fibers of the fascia. The plantar fascia is a strong connective tissue located underneath the foot. It attaches below the calcaneous or heel bone to the digits of the foot. The plantar fascia plays a vital role in maintaining the arch of the foot; hence, this structure is constantly under stress.

Achilles tendinitis, on the other hand, is due to injury of the Achilles tendon causing heel pain behind the foot. The Achilles tendon attaches behind the heel bone to the calf muscles above. Achilles tendinitis is particularly common among women who use improper foot wear such as high heels.

Heel Pain Symptoms

Typical pain for plantar fasciitis is felt when a person gets out of bed, taking their first steps in the morning. Usually, a stabbing sharp pain is felt at the bottom or front of the heel. This also holds true for Achilles tendinitis but pain is felt at the back of the heel.

The pain will diminish throughout the day as the tendons and muscles adjust and adapt to the swelling. Unfortunately, after periods of rest, the heel pain can return sharper and stronger. During rest, the ligaments of the foot will tighten and shorten. When we get up, the foot receives the full weight of our body and the sudden stretching of the ligaments is the cause of the stabbing pain.

The best way to treat any type of acute heel pain is the RICE (rest, ice, compress, elevate) method. If pain persists, it is very important to have your foot checked by a podiatrist.

Common Cause Of Foot Pain

Our feet are probably the most abused parts of the body. We use our feet the moment we get out of bed, it bears the weight of the whole body and imagine the tremendous stress we put on our feet when we run or lift heavy loads.  

It is no wonder why we experience foot pain every now and then. But if foot pain does not go away in a few days, you may have a foot condition that’s causing all your pain.

Plantar fasciitis is one of the common causes of chronic heel pain. The plantar fascia is a very strong connective tissue that attaches to the calcaneous bone or heel bone to the metatarsal bones, and is responsible for maintaining the arch of the foot. Usually, the plantar fascia gets micro injuries when using the wrong footwear, lifting heavy weights, sports and due to old age.

Another common cause of foot pain is Achilles tendinitis. The Achilles tendon is also a very strong ligament, just like the plantar fascia. This time, the Achilles tendon is found behind the foot, and it attaches behind the heel bone to the gastrocnemius and soleus muscles above. Just like the plantar fascia, the Achilles tendon can also suffer from micro injuries which causes a lot of pain.

One way to manage foot pain is to do the RICE method. 

Rest. Allowing the foot to rest is very important to stop further injuries to the plantar fascia or Achilles tendon. This will allow the micro injuries to heal.

Ice. Applying cold stimuli to the foot can relieve pain and inflammation. Do this in 2-3 minute intervals, too much isn’t good too, because it can actually aggravate the pain.

Compression. Wrapping the affected foot with an elastic bandage is a good way reduce swelling, it is also good in immobilizing the foot. Remember not to wrap the bandage too tight.

Elevate. Elevating the foot above the heart is an excellent way to alleviate swelling of the foot. This prevents any “pooling” on the affected foot.

How To Deal With Achilles Tendinitis

The Achilles tendon is the largest tendon in the body. Unfortunately, it is also vulnerable and prone to injury. It attaches at the back portion of the calcaneus bone or commonly called the heel bone to the calf muscles of the lower leg. Tendons are strong fibrous tissues that have limited flexibility making them prone to inflammation, irritations, tears or rupture.

Achilles tendinitis is the medical condition where the Achilles tendon becomes irritated or inflamed causing heel pain at the back portion of the foot. This occurs because of overuse of the tendon and is commonly seen on athletes. Overuse or pushing the tendon to its limits causes minute or micro injuries within the tendon. In some cases, a tear can occur or worse, total tear can occur where the calf muscles are totally detached from the heel bone. 

The most common cause of Achilles tendonitis is ignoring the early signs of tendon injury and continuing activity despite of the pain. In some cases when pain is already severe, patients tend to take pain killers and continue with their daily activities. This is an erroneous practice and any foot pain should be taken seriously because this can lead to chronic heel pain, which could be debilitating later on.

Achilles tendonitis is easily treated by basically allowing the foot to rest. This gives the Achilles tendon ample time to heal any injury involved.  Also, cold compress can help with the pain and can suppress any swelling. Calf stretching and massage can help reduce muscle tension on the Achilles tendon.

Some modalities like ESWT or extracorporeal shockwave therapy is an excellent non-invasive treatment especially for chronic heel pain. This machine sends multiple ultrasonic shock waves to the heel producing microscopic injuries. This in turn improves circulation because this creates vasculogenesis or new blood vessel growth. ESWT uses the own regenerative healing properties of the body to treat chronic heel pain. Pain relief is instantaneous in some patients after one treatment, while others will experience a tingling sensation and significant pain relief.

What is Ankle Arthritis?

Arthritis is a disease commonly affecting the elderly and it can affect any joint in the body. The usual symptom of arthritis is pain.

There are two types of pain associated with arthritis: acute and chronic pain. Acute pain goes away after resting and is temporary. Chronic pain is constant pain and doesn't easily go away. The pain may lessen over time but it is still there. Chronic pain is always a symptom of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

Weight bearing joints are almost always affected by chronic pain. A good example is arthritis affecting the ankles causing severe heel pain. This involves joints between the shin bone and ankle bone or better known as tibiotalar joint. Ankle arthritis is common in the elderly because of the natural degeneration of the joints. At the tip of each bone is found a special tissue called cartilage bone. This bone is found inside each joint and it has a very smooth surface. As we get older, the smooth surface kind of roughens a bit and this is the cause of the arthritis pain. In worse cases, some patients have totally worn out the cartilages and the actual bones are rubbing against each other. Undoubtedly this causes extreme pain.

Ankle arthritis can also be found in the younger age group especially if the joint got injured. Frequent sprains can damage the cartilages. Being overweight can also put too much stress to the joints and the cartilages get to rub hard at each other because of the weight.

The Basics of Ankle Arthritis

The conditions of ankle arthritis can be really painful since the entire body weight is on your lower extremiteis while walking.

Conservative treatment can involve NSAIDS, physical therapy, injection therapy and ankle braces. Surgeries involve ankle arthroscopy (scope), implants, ankle stabilization procedures and fusions. The treatments of ankle surgery are not always successful like knee and hip implants.

The configuration of the ankle joint is difficult to formulate. Also the surface area to weight ratio is a challenge to duplicate. The problem can be tackled by seeking advice from a foot surgeon. Presently the United States and for many years Europe has been using a remarkable technique for this problem. It is known as ankle arthrodiastasis.. The process simply distracts the ankle joints and regenerates the cartilage which decreases the pain.

Currently, various institutions are combining the above procedure with joint replacement therapy. The procedure of joint fluid replacement therapy is not yet currently FDA approved for use in the ankle joint, so the patient must be fully informed of such.

Family Foot and Leg Center in Naples has been doing this procedure with good success in patients between 80%-90% improvement in pain. This is a good substitute to ankle fusion, which is a permanent procedure in which the surgeon puts two bones together to act as one, taking away the painful joint.

In fact, rheumatoid arthritis is the most common form of feet disorder. It is a degenerative disease of joints which involves the breakdown of cartilage. The symptoms are aching of feet and severe immobility in certain cases. It usually attacks the joints which render them to become weak and eventually prone to such dysfunctionality.