Common Disorders

Plantar fasciitis is an overuse injury of the foot, resulting in inflammation to the plantar fascia.

The plantar fascia is a unique soft-tissue complex on the bottom of the foot. It acts as a net between several different muscle bundles, as well as a major shock-absorber of the foot.

The plantar fascia has a special role in walking. During different phases of the gait cycle, this soft tissue is expanding or contracting to help propel the foot forward.

Too much stress on this part of the foot creates painful inflammation of this tissue.

Plantar fasciitis feels like a deep bruise on the bottom of the foot, and can include throbbing and stabbing sensations.

The pain is often most intense on the inside bottom of the heel, where the plantar fascia inserts on the bone.

Sometimes the tissue will feel thickened and will be painful to the touch.

Heel spurs result from the development of bony growth on the bottom of the heel. They are identifiable by x-ray.

It’s believed that heel spurs result when the plantar fascia thickens at its insertion to heel bone after long term inflammation. As this thickened tissue pulls on the bone, the bone responds by depositing new bone, and becoming thicker.

Neuromas occur after chronic irritation to nerve fibers in the foot. Shoes with small foot boxes and overuse injuries of the foot create a stressed response from the nerve that allows the nerve to grow. This growth is called a neuroma.

Morton’s neuroma occurs behind the toes on the outside part of the foot, and is one of the most well known foot neuromas.

Numbness, tingling, burning, and shock-like pain in the ball of the foot are common with nueromas.

Fibromas are benign tumors of the connective tissue fibers of the body, especially the large organs.

Occasionally these benign tumors occur in the tissues of the foot. If they are large enough and impinging on other structures like nerves and muscles, then fibromas can become painful.

If the fibroma isn’t affecting another tissue, then a fibroma may actually be painless.

If a fibroma is large enough to affect a nerve, then the patient experiences the numbness, tingling, and burning associated with nerve pain.

If the fibroma affects muscles or bone, then the fibroma may create pain similar to muscular or bony soreness.

Paresthesias are pins-and-needles sensations on the surface of the skin.

The sensation can be created by inflammation of nerves, or from the breakdown of nerve cells with inflammatory diseases, like diabetic neuropathy of the feet.

Multiple disease processes can cause pins-and-needle sensations in the feet, including multiple sclerosis and diabetes.

Allodynia is a state of super-sensitive skin and soft tissue. Pain occurs with only the slightest pressure and stress.

Pain caused by allodynia can be burning, itching, or electrical pain. Sometimes the pain will travel away from the site of irritation.