If your first step out of bed in the morning is excruciating and it feels like you have a bruise on the bottom of your heel that isn't getting better with time, your doctor may recommend a plantar fasciitis night splint to help ease your pain. The splint, with its rigid exterior, padded interior and adjustable Velcro straps, looks a bit like a removable cast for your lower leg, ankle and foot. It's designed to keep your ankle in a flexed position while you sleep, providing a gentle stretch to muscles and ligaments in your lower leg and preventing the plantar fascia from tightening up overnight. Plantar fasciitis, as its name suggests, is an inflammation of the plantar fascia, which runs along the base of the foot, connecting the heel bone to the toes. While you may never determine the cause, once your doctor has diagnosed plantar fasciitis, there are several steps you can take to relieve the symptoms, including using a night splint, taking prescription or over-the-counter anti-inflammatory medications, doing specific exercises to strengthen certain muscles in your legs, wearing orthotic devices in your shoes, or some combination of these methods. Sometimes doctors may prescribe physical therapy or administer steroid injections to help as well. In rare cases when none of these options offers sufficient relief, surgery is an option. Source: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0004438/ A plantar fasciitis night splint is one of the simplest, most effective and most non-invasive methods of treating the painful foot condition. Simply strap it onto your lower leg after getting into bed for the night and go to sleep. It may take a few nights to get used to sleeping with the device, but once you do, it will just become part of your routine. When using a plantar fasciitis night splint, there are a few precautions you should take. If you need to get up in the middle of the night, you should always remove the splint before getting out of bed. Don't attempt to walk in the device, particularly on uncarpeted surfaces, because the smooth outer shell of the splint has no traction, so you could easily slip and fall. Most people report a significant reduction in in their morning foot pain after using a splint for just a few nights. Doctors generally recommend that you keep using the device until your symptoms are completely gone. About Intermountain Foot & Ankle, PC
Colorado Springs podiatrist, Kerry E. Berg, DPM, can be reached for consultation at 719-594-9920.
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