Abstract
Introduction: Plantar fasciitis is a painful ailment that causes frustration to both the patient and physician. Stretching exercises targeting the plantar fascia are an excellent therapy option for plantar fasciitis.Objective: To compare the outcome of a gastrocnemius-soleus stretching program versus tendo Achilles stretching exercises for the management of chronic plantar fasciitis.Methods: Patients aged 30-70 years of either gender with chronic plantar fasciitis were included and randomly divided into two groups. In group A, the gastrocnemius-soleus stretching program was applied, whereas in group B, the tendo Achilles stretching exercises were adopted. The pain score was determined at baseline and after eight weeks, and the change in pain score was calculated. All information was noted in the proforma and then entered and analyzed in the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software version 21 (International Business Machines (IBM), New York, United States). An independent-samples t-test was conducted to compare the mean change in pain score in both groups. A P value of <0.05 was considered significant.Results: The mean age of the patients in the gastrocnemius-soleus stretching group was 48.70 ± 9.80 years, whereas that in the tendo Achilles stretching exercises group was 48.63 ± 8.43 years. Group A included 16 (53.3%) men and 14 (46.7%) women, whereas in group B, there were 15 (50%) men and 15 (50%) women. The mean change in pain score in group A was 2.57 ± 1.01, whereas that in group B was 1.77 ± 0.57. The difference in both groups was significant (P < 0.05).Conclusion: Gastrocnemius-soleus stretching exercises are more effective for reducing the symptoms of plantar fasciitis in the adult population.
Highlights
Plantar fasciitis is a painful ailment that causes frustration to both the patient and physician
Conservative therapy is recommended, and many conservative approaches have been discussed in the literature, e.g., shoe inserts, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), night splints, stretching exercises, extracorporeal shockwave therapy (ESWT), corticosteroid injection, botulinum toxin injection, taping, and casting [5]
We estimated that 60 subjects were required for the study (i.e., 30 cases in each group) to maintain a 95% confidence level and 80% study power and to detect a mean change in pain score of 2.50 ± 0.861 in the gastrocnemius-soleus stretching program and 1.71 ± 1.006 with tendo Achilles stretching exercises for the management of chronic plantar fasciitis
Summary
Plantar fasciitis is a painful ailment that causes frustration to both the patient and physician. Stretching exercises targeting the plantar fascia are an excellent therapy option for plantar fasciitis. The plantar fascia is a thick, multilayered fibrous connective tissue on the sole of the foot that facilitates the formation of the foot’s longitudinal arch [1]. Despite substantial research into this issue, foot surgeons continue to disagree over the cause and genesis of plantar heel pain, as well as the best treatment option [3]. The connection between the fascia and skeletal muscles to form a bodywide network of multidirectional myofascial continuity calls into question the traditional view of muscles as autonomous actuators [4]. As part of the initial therapy for plantar fasciitis, the gastrocnemius-soleus muscles are frequently stretched to increase the dorsiflexion range of motion [6]
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