Acupuncture for plantar fasciitis, treatment of plantar fasciitis with electro-acupuncture
Plantar fasciitis is probably the most common causes of pain on the heel. This is a chronic pain and inflammation of a thick band of tissue, called the plantar fascia, that runs across the bottom of your foot and connects your heel bone to your toes.
Plantar fasciitis often causes stabbing pain on the very first steps in the morning. Once the foot limbers up, the pain of plantar fasciitis normally decreases, but usually return after long walk, or long periods of standing or after getting up from a seated position.
Plantar fasciitis is common in runners, people who are overweight and those who wear shoes with inadequate support.
Approximately 10% of people have plantar fasciitis at some point during their lifetime
It is most common in people between the ages of 40 to 60 years. However, it can occur at any age. It is twice as common in women as it is in men. It is also common in athletes.
Plantar fasciitis often causes stabbing pain on the very first steps in the morning. Once the foot limbers up, the pain of plantar fasciitis normally decreases, but usually return after long walk, or long periods of standing or after getting up from a seated position.
Plantar fasciitis is common in runners, people who are overweight and those who wear shoes with inadequate support.
Approximately 10% of people have plantar fasciitis at some point during their lifetime
It is most common in people between the ages of 40 to 60 years. However, it can occur at any age. It is twice as common in women as it is in men. It is also common in athletes.
Acupuncture is a very successful treatment to relieve pain, restore flexibility, and prevent further structural deterioration of the feet.
Acupuncture and more so electro-acupuncture reduces local inflammation and improve blood flow in the feet. Leectro_acupuncture is thought to send signal to the brain, causing the release of pain killer and anti-inflammatory that start a healing process in the foot.
Acupuncture and more so electro-acupuncture reduces local inflammation and improve blood flow in the feet. Leectro_acupuncture is thought to send signal to the brain, causing the release of pain killer and anti-inflammatory that start a healing process in the foot.
Effect of acupuncture treatment on heel pain due to plantar fasciitis
Eighteen patients attending an orthopaedic outpatient clinic with a year or more's history of heel pain due to plantar fasciitis were studied. All had had conservative treatment of physiotherapy and shoe-support without significant pain relief before acupuncture was offered, and thus acted as their own controls for the purposes of the study. The following traditional points were needled: Taixi (KI.3), Kunlun (BL.60) and Sanyinjiao (SP.6). Pain was assessed by a 100mm visual analogue scale (VAS) before treatment was started and after four, weekly sessions of acupuncture treatment. If complete pain relief was not obtained by the initial four-week treatment, a further two, weekly sessions of the above mentioned acupoints, with the addition of trigger point acupuncture in the gastro-soleus and plantar fascia, was carried out and pain assessed.
Patients were also assessed with a verbal rating score to indicate the percentage improvement after acupuncture compared to before treatment. The mean duration of heel pain was 25.11 months (SD 10.68). The VAS data obtained at 4 and 6 weeks of acupuncture treatment showed a statistically highly significant improvement compared to the VAS before acupuncture (p < 0.0009 and p < 0.0001 respectively). Using the Mann-Whitney test, there was a statistically significant difference in VAS obtained at 6 weeks, after trigger point acupuncture had been added for poor responders, compared to that obtained after the first 4 weeks of acupuncture treatment (p < 0.047). Our study demonstrates that acupuncture is effective in treating patients with chronic heel pain due to plantar fasciitis and that the addition of trigger point acupuncture in poor or non-responders may be useful.
Patients were also assessed with a verbal rating score to indicate the percentage improvement after acupuncture compared to before treatment. The mean duration of heel pain was 25.11 months (SD 10.68). The VAS data obtained at 4 and 6 weeks of acupuncture treatment showed a statistically highly significant improvement compared to the VAS before acupuncture (p < 0.0009 and p < 0.0001 respectively). Using the Mann-Whitney test, there was a statistically significant difference in VAS obtained at 6 weeks, after trigger point acupuncture had been added for poor responders, compared to that obtained after the first 4 weeks of acupuncture treatment (p < 0.047). Our study demonstrates that acupuncture is effective in treating patients with chronic heel pain due to plantar fasciitis and that the addition of trigger point acupuncture in poor or non-responders may be useful.
