Can plantar fasciitis be treated with acupuncture?

Written by Guan Jing Tao
Orthopedics
Updated on September 13, 2024
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After the non-acute phase of plantar fasciitis, it is possible to combine local acupuncture, physiotherapy, and treatments that stimulate circulation and relieve blockages to promote the recovery of inflammation and local tissue damage. However, during the acute phase of plantar fasciitis, and if there is no significant improvement after acupuncture treatment during the non-acute phase, it may be necessary to combine oral non-steroidal anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving medications, along with daily local heat physiotherapy. Generally, improvement can be seen after two to four weeks. If there still is no obvious improvement, it is recommended to revisit the hospital for further examination. If significant localized tenderness is confirmed, local block therapy may be considered. (Medication should be used under the guidance of a doctor.)

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Written by Wang Cheng Lin
Orthopedics
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Can you still exercise with plantar fasciitis?

Patients with plantar fasciitis can exercise, but there are definite restrictions on the type of exercise. For instance, it is best to avoid weight-bearing exercises such as running, weightlifting, or mountain climbing. For patients with plantar fasciitis, we recommend swimming because it involves limb, muscle, and fascia activities in a non-weight-bearing situation, which is greatly beneficial and not harmful to the fascia. Swimming is our recommended approach, as it can also appropriately stretch the plantar fascia during the process, thereby helping to alleviate foot pain.

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Written by Wang Cheng Lin
Orthopedics
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How long does it take to recover from plantar fasciitis?

For the disease of plantar fasciitis, if treated under normal conventional methods, the recovery time is generally around four to six weeks. However, during the treatment period, it is crucial to strictly follow the treatment principles, such as prohibiting excessive weight-bearing walking, strenuous exercise, and overworking. At the same time, some physical therapy methods should be coordinated, such as massage, acupuncture, electrotherapy, and magnetotherapy. In more severe cases, occlusion methods can be used to alleviate local pain. Generally, the time frame is four to six weeks. If the results from regular conservative treatment are not satisfactory, surgical treatment may be required later on.

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Written by Wang Cheng Lin
Orthopedics
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Plantar fasciitis clinical symptoms

The clinical manifestation of plantar fasciitis primarily involves pain on the inner side of the foot when bearing weight, particularly severe during excessive weight-bearing activities. This pain can significantly affect your posture while walking and has a substantial impact on daily life. Currently, there are two main treatments used clinically. The first is conservative treatment, which mainly involves rest, local injections, electrotherapy, magnet therapy, and acupuncture to alleviate the pain. If conservative treatment fails to yield results after more than six months and the pain progressively worsens, surgical treatment becomes the only option. Surgical treatment includes releasing the plantar fascia, removing bone spurs, and eliminating inflammatory tissue around the plantar fascia to relieve pain.

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Written by Wang Cheng Lin
Orthopedics
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How to cure plantar fasciitis?

In clinical practice, there are currently two methods for treating plantar fasciitis. The first method is the most commonly seen conservative treatment, such as using rest, wearing orthotic shoes, and utilizing acupuncture, massage, electrotherapy, magnetotherapy, and local infiltration therapy to alleviate the symptoms of foot pain caused by the plantar fascia while walking. However, if conservative treatment does not yield results after six months or if the pain intensifies and severely affects weight-bearing walking, then it may become necessary to proceed with the second method of treatment, which is surgical intervention. The goals of surgical treatment include, firstly, loosening the plantar fascia and, secondly, removing bone spurs, as a significant number of patients with plantar fasciitis also develop bone spurs. Therefore, along with loosening the fascia, it is necessary to excise the bone spurs to relieve the symptoms of foot pain.

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Written by Wang Cheng Lin
Orthopedics
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Which department should I register for plantar fasciitis?

To register for plantar fasciitis at a hospital, you need to visit two departments. The first is the orthopedics department, where the primary goal is to determine the cause of your plantar fasciitis. Firstly, it is necessary to check for the presence of heel spurs by taking an X-ray of the foot. Secondly, an MRI of the foot may be required to ascertain whether there is significant congestion and edema in your plantar fascia. As for treatment, you can seek help from the pain management department. The pain management department can provide local physical therapy and local blockade treatment to alleviate your pain. If this pain does not improve or worsens after more than six months of conservative treatment, severely affecting your daily life, you might need to return to the orthopedics department for surgical treatment. The surgery involves loosening the plantar fascia to help relieve the pain.