Heel pain in adults can be caused by several conditions, however the most common cause is a disorder called plantar fasciitis. The pain from this generally occurs under the heel and the classic sign is that the discomfort is a whole lot worse when getting out of bed first thing in the morning for those first couple of steps. After those first steps the discomfort does ease to some extent, however it worsens once again as the day goes on. The plantar fascia is a long ligament beneath the bottom of the foot that is responsible for assisting the arch of the foot, so plantar fasciitis is caused by there being a lot of strain on the arch of the feet. The primary risk factors for plantar fasciitis are tight calf muscles, being obese and having higher levels of exercise. Foot alignment problems that raises the load in the plantar fascia are usually a factor in increasing the strain.
The primary approach to plantar fasciitis is pain alleviation by using ice after activity and perhaps the use of anti-inflammatory and pain relief medicine. Low dye strapping could also be used temporarily to help you with the pain. Foot orthotics enables you to decrease the strain on the arch of the foot and correct any alignment problems that might be a factor in leading to the condition. You will need to stretch the calf muscles as it really is a big risk. Night may also be used to help with this stretching if required. Strengthening the muscles which also support the arch could also be advantageous since they take some strain of the plantar fascia. In the long run, losing weight is really important because this actually does create a lot of stress in the foot. Whenever these kinds of methods are not helping to well, then it is time to consider treatment such as shockwave therapy or corticosteroid shots. A last option could be surgical treatment.