Braces or Night Splints

What are Night Splints or Braces?

Night splints (braces) may be used to treat conditions such as Achilles tendinopathy and plantar fasciitis. The splint holds the foot with the toes pointed up.

Night Splints apply constant, consistent strain or gentle stretch to the plantar fascia. This not only maintains functional length but eventually provides a net reduction of stress within the plantar fascia and intrinsic muscles.

How Long Does It Take For Plantar Fasciitis To Go Away?

Plantar fasciitis is an overuse injury, which causes inflammation at the origin of the plantar fascia. It is characterized by pain and inflammation secondary to strain on the intrinsic musculature and plantar fascia at their origin from the calcaneal tubercles.

Night splints as part of their standard of care for treating plantar fasciitis.

95% of people with plantar fasciitis are able to recover within 6 months of onset with the use of home treatments.

While half a year may seem like a long time, it's nothing compared to the recovery time of surgery. Sometimes, however, plantar fasciitis will not go away with home remedies

Can Plantar Fasciitis Go Away On Its Own?

Plantar fasciitis usually goes away on its own, but it can take six weeks to 12 months. ... If you're still in pain after six to eight weeks, consult a foot specialist.

To reduce pain and inflammation your doctor may recommend:

• Physical Therapy,
• Braces Or Night Splints, Or
• A Steroid Injection.

How Night Splints Work

The therapeutic benefit of night splints is based on maintaining the length of the plantar fascia while the patient sleeps.

Normally, muscle tone within the triceps surae causes the ankle joint to assume a plantar flexed position while at rest. With the foot in the plantarflexion position, the plantar fascia and intrinsic plantar musculature shorten, relax and adapt overnight to a nonfunctional state.

The shortened, tight plantar fascia and intrinsic musculature would explain the phenomenon of post-static dyskinesia in which the first few steps after long periods of rest are extremely painful.

Can A Night Splint Make Plantar Fasciitis Worse?

Plantar fasciitis is made worse by tight muscles in your feet and calves.

This may take many months to improve. A night splint stretches the plantar fascia while you sleep. Although it can be hard to sleep with, a night splint works well and does not have to be used once the pain is gone.

Do You Keep A Splint On Overnight?

Many people with mild to moderate carpal tunnel syndrome wear a splint at night for a few weeks.

The splint holds the joint in a neutral position. The symptoms are worse at night because your hand is more likely to bend while you're sleeping.

A support bandage can be used instead of a splint.

Although night splints can be a valuable treatment for plantar fasciitis, their bulkiness can make patient adherence a challenge.

The splint maintains elongation of posterior and plantar structures including the Achilles tendon, triceps surae, intrinsic musculature and plantar fascia. This reduces tension on the medial calcaneal tubercle where the plantar fascia originates.

Alternative Therapies for Plantar Fasciitis

Most commonly, treatment includes a combination of conservative modalities.

Other ways of reducing inflammation and associated pain include the use of

• heel pads,
• orthoses,
• padding,
• strapping,
• stretching,
• physical therapy,
• nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), and
• corticosteroid injections.

Even with appropriate treatment, plantar fasciitis sometimes becomes recalcitrant and may necessitate surgery.

About Plantar Fasciitis

The classic physical examination finding is point tenderness at the anterior edge of the fascial attachment to the medial calcaneal tubercle. This usually coincides with a history of pain upon rising in the morning.

Patients usually relate that the pain subsides during the day but returns after periods of non-weight bearing.