Plantar faciitis or not plantar faciitis...
June 9, 2010 2:36 AM Subscribe
Is this really Plantar Faciitis, and is it supposed to hurt this much...?
I went to se my doc yesterday because my foot was painful to an extent I've never known before - I fell down the last two stairs yesterday morning because my leg gave way due to the pain. I also nearly got myself run over because (walking out of the chemists, with a walking stick) I stepped off the kerb hard and had to stop for ten seconds to remember what the hell I was doing.
His diagnosis is that it's plantar faciitis. Doing a little reading on the net, I can see why it would fit (because I tend to wear Vivo Barefoot shoes and I'm a built like a brick shithouse). The thing is, I can't make the pain fit the descriptions I'm getting online.
Everything sems to imply that the pain should be in my heel and a few centimeters forward of it.
What I'm getting is a lot of pain my my ankle and down the top of the bone that runs to my big toe. Prodding the sole of my foot triggers a dull ache, but prodding the top of my foot can trigger a stab of horrible pain again.
Oh, and I nearly screamed the house down when my wife (rather heavily) turned over in bed last night...
So... I'm not asking you for a diagnosis, Mefi, I'm just wondering if this sounds wrong to any of you with more knowledge of the foot than I.
I went to se my doc yesterday because my foot was painful to an extent I've never known before - I fell down the last two stairs yesterday morning because my leg gave way due to the pain. I also nearly got myself run over because (walking out of the chemists, with a walking stick) I stepped off the kerb hard and had to stop for ten seconds to remember what the hell I was doing.
His diagnosis is that it's plantar faciitis. Doing a little reading on the net, I can see why it would fit (because I tend to wear Vivo Barefoot shoes and I'm a built like a brick shithouse). The thing is, I can't make the pain fit the descriptions I'm getting online.
Everything sems to imply that the pain should be in my heel and a few centimeters forward of it.
What I'm getting is a lot of pain my my ankle and down the top of the bone that runs to my big toe. Prodding the sole of my foot triggers a dull ache, but prodding the top of my foot can trigger a stab of horrible pain again.
Oh, and I nearly screamed the house down when my wife (rather heavily) turned over in bed last night...
So... I'm not asking you for a diagnosis, Mefi, I'm just wondering if this sounds wrong to any of you with more knowledge of the foot than I.
Plantar fasciitis is not usually a diagnosis made after trauma.
Did you get x-rays? Unless you're pain free at all the sites on the Ottawa Ankle and Foot Rules, that might be warranted.
(I am not your doctor, you are not my patient, please followup immediately with your regular doctor since you're continuing to have pain.)
posted by gramcracker at 3:52 AM on June 9, 2010
Did you get x-rays? Unless you're pain free at all the sites on the Ottawa Ankle and Foot Rules, that might be warranted.
(I am not your doctor, you are not my patient, please followup immediately with your regular doctor since you're continuing to have pain.)
posted by gramcracker at 3:52 AM on June 9, 2010
I was also diagnosed with plantar fasciitis. My pain also came after barefoot running - I forgot my sneakers for a game of frisbee with college kids and the next morning I was incapacitated for the first hour. Mostly it hurt first thing in the morning, excruciatingly, but would get better throughout the day as it loosened up. I will not be running barefoot, until I relearn how to run.
That said, my pain was exactly where expected, just in front of the heel on the bottom of the foot. Having had a host of foot and ankle injuries, I would want an xray in your situation.
posted by mearls at 5:19 AM on June 9, 2010
That said, my pain was exactly where expected, just in front of the heel on the bottom of the foot. Having had a host of foot and ankle injuries, I would want an xray in your situation.
posted by mearls at 5:19 AM on June 9, 2010
I agree that it doesn't sound like plantar fasciitis (not an expert, but a flat-footed and stubborn runner-type person who is prone to foot issues).
posted by smalls at 6:55 AM on June 9, 2010
posted by smalls at 6:55 AM on June 9, 2010
Mine definitely presented as heel pain, without any top of the foot component, so a second (doctor) opinion is not out of order, but the barefoot shoes do jump out... Is your pain better/worse at certain times? Plantar fasciitis is often worse when you stand up, better after you've been standing for a bit, and then worse again if you stand too long, this is also common for other irritated tendon type things. Also, what did your doctor recommend that you do? I'm guessing he/she suggested trying some normal trainers, and maybe orthotics, and this sounds like a really good idea to me. It's not like you have to commit to them for life, but you should be open to the idea that different shoes could be a solution to foot pain (regardless of the specific name for your foot pain). (I really, really did not want to switch to normal shoes, but avoiding horrible pain turns out to be pretty nice.)
posted by anaelith at 8:04 AM on June 9, 2010
posted by anaelith at 8:04 AM on June 9, 2010
Not a doc, but I ran on plantar facitiis for over a year.
What you are describing doesn't really sound like plantar facitiis. Is the pain much worse in the morning or after sitting for awhile? That's the textbook plantar facitiis symptom.
In your case, I'd request an X-ray to rule out a stress fracture or some other bone injury. (I'm assuming that you feel because of the pain, not that the fall caused the pain.) Your feet also have tons of soft tissue - tendons, ligaments. muscles. Any one of those soft tissues could cause you pain and you won't see that on an X-ray.
Whatever it is, you probably need a referral to PT and maybe to podiatry. If it's plantar facitiis, PT can help you with stretching and breaking up the adhesions. If it's something else, a podiatrist is a better bet.
posted by 26.2 at 8:15 AM on June 9, 2010
What you are describing doesn't really sound like plantar facitiis. Is the pain much worse in the morning or after sitting for awhile? That's the textbook plantar facitiis symptom.
In your case, I'd request an X-ray to rule out a stress fracture or some other bone injury. (I'm assuming that you feel because of the pain, not that the fall caused the pain.) Your feet also have tons of soft tissue - tendons, ligaments. muscles. Any one of those soft tissues could cause you pain and you won't see that on an X-ray.
Whatever it is, you probably need a referral to PT and maybe to podiatry. If it's plantar facitiis, PT can help you with stretching and breaking up the adhesions. If it's something else, a podiatrist is a better bet.
posted by 26.2 at 8:15 AM on June 9, 2010
You're not getting pain in the usual place for PF. Are you getting pain at the usual time, where it's worse after sitting or lying down for a while, with the first steps afterwards being very painful, and prolonged standing making it worse again?
You may well have PF, but there's probably something else going on with or without PF. Pain along the ankle is a huge outlier, and the pain at the top of your foot could be something like a Morton's neuroma (a benign and painful growth that can be treated once it is properly diagnosed). Or you just may have strained the hell out of your foot.
What has your doctor suggested as treatment?
posted by maudlin at 8:15 AM on June 9, 2010
You may well have PF, but there's probably something else going on with or without PF. Pain along the ankle is a huge outlier, and the pain at the top of your foot could be something like a Morton's neuroma (a benign and painful growth that can be treated once it is properly diagnosed). Or you just may have strained the hell out of your foot.
What has your doctor suggested as treatment?
posted by maudlin at 8:15 AM on June 9, 2010
I strongly suggest a second opinion from a different doctor, preferably a podiatrist. I am a medical doctor fan, but no one gets every diagnosis right.
posted by bearwife at 9:00 AM on June 9, 2010
posted by bearwife at 9:00 AM on June 9, 2010
Oh yeh, check your piriformis muscle as well for trigger points.
posted by Not Supplied at 2:29 AM on June 10, 2010
posted by Not Supplied at 2:29 AM on June 10, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
Because I didn't take care of it but getting better shoes right away, it then began to hurt in the sole of my foot. Another side effect was that my opposite knee became stressed due to my limping, and I was out of commission more for the knee than the foot!
posted by kidelo at 3:16 AM on June 9, 2010