Plantar Heel Pain

Plantar fasciitis is a common problem without known etiology. It responds well to multiple conservative modalities and no particular modality has been demonstrated to be clearly superior in the treatment of this condition. Over 90% of patients will be cured by non-operative treatment but this may require 6 to 12 months of treatment and encouragement by the physician. Extracorporeal shock wave therapy is a noninvasive treatment with a success rate comparable to surgery and a low complication rate. Surgery can be done endoscopically or open with similar long-term outcomes. Patients appear to recover from endoscopic treatment 4 to 5 weeks earlier than the open group. If there is a suggestion of FBLPN entrapment, then patients should have an open release.