Do you suffer from pain in your heel and wondering why this is happening? Plantar fascitis, commonly known as a heel spur, causes pain in the heel. Plantar fascitis is fibrous tissue which runs along the bottom surface of the foot, all the way from the heel to the toes. If you have plantar fascitis it basically means that the plantar fascia is inflamed.

If you have had the condition for a long time, calcium usually deposits at the point where the plantar fascia meets the heel. On an x-ray, this produces an appearance of a thorn like heel spur. The actual spur is not painful; it is the inflammation which makes the condition painful. The pain varies but generally includes a dull ache felt most of the time, followed by sharp pain in the center of the heel or on the inside margin of the heel.

Heel spurs are caused by excessive force on the foot. This condition is common in middle-aged and overweight people because they tend to put more pressure onto the heel. Pregnant women are also at risk of the condition as they tend to put on weight quite quickly, and again there is a lot of pressure on the heel.

Plantar fascitis or heel spur can be cured with lots of physiotherapy as well as medication, but in some cases surgery may be required to remove the bone spur, or to release the fascia away from the heel bone where it was pulling away.

There is a new treatment, Endoscopic Plantar Fasciotomy, a non-invasive method that helps treat fascia inflammation. The new technique involves making a very small incision into the heel area, and placing the endoscope into the heel area. This then projects a large image back to a television screen, where the surgeon has a pretty good idea of what is going on within the heel.

The EndoScopic Plantar Fasciotomy is done under local anesthetic and unlike other, more invasive techniques; it does not take as long. Usually straight after the treatment, patients are able to walk normally and they can put pressure onto the heel with no problems.