I see many types of athletes in my office who come in either to achieve a higher level of performance or because of an injury. One very common injury (esp.) to runners is plantar fasciitis. It is commonly referred to as “Runner’s Heel”. The plantar fascia is a ligament. It is a thick and flat band of connective tissues on the bottom of our foot that originates near the heel bone, medically known as the calcaneus bone. It basically connects our toes to the heel bone. And functions to support the arch of the foot. While running, this ligament works closely with the Achilles tendon to both store and return energy and stabilizes our inner forefoot when the force peaks during push off. A runner develops Plantar Fasciitis c when this ligament becomes strained. Straining and excessive lowering of the foot arch increases tension in the plantar fascia that results in tiny tears of the ligament and overloads the attachment of the plantar fascia on the calcaneus bone. If not treated timely, it swells, becomes inflamed and weak – shooting unimaginable pain into the heel during runs.
Runners are most likely to experience this condition if they have tight calf muscles. Another factor is excessive pronation and repeat hill workouts. You’ll be surprised to know that approximately 10% of runners experience plantar fasciitis injury in their career and unfortunately, some even quit because of the pain. But for a passionate runner, quitting is never in the cards. A passionate runner looks for solutions to fire up the run rather than waving a white flag and saying goodbye to the tracks.
If you have or ever have had plantar fasciitis, then chances are that you have tried a number of remedies such as wearing night splints, using insoles, taping your feet, taking Anti Inflammatory medications and/or stretching. Some find relief with these methods while many others find the relief to be short lived or get none at all. It is very common to have plantar fasciitis recur many times resulting in a great deal of down time and deconditioning. There is also the recurring financial expenditure on doctors and remedies. This is when many turn to alternate treatment methods such as acupuncture. In my practice I have achieved great results that can help people beat the pain and recover fast.
Based on research and the excellent results I have achieved, I am confident that acupuncture for plantar fasciitis is probably one of the best treatments available. Like always, my goal is to empower you with complete knowledge about this treatment so that you can decide for yourself. I will walk you through what it acupuncture, how it works, what medical science says about it so you know what to expect. Call my office for a FREE consultation and decide for yourself.
Dr. Edward Scarlett
Cert., Ac Dipl. Ac.
(561)272-7816
