Healthy Fluids

A common predicament in both men and women is heel pain. Around one in ten people will have at least one episode of heel pain in their lifetime. This article discusses heel pain, its management, and the use of ESWT in plantar fasciitis.

The common home treatments for heel pain include resting the affected foot as much as possible or at least for seven days. In the first couple of days, applying ice to the painful area can help decrease inflammation. This should be done two to three times a day for 15 minutes at a time. To relieve pain and minimize swelling, over the counter medications such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen can be taken.

To protect the heels, shoe inserts or heel pads can be used. It is also important to wear proper-fitting shoes. If the pain does not get better in a couple of week after home treatments, see your podiatrist for a proper evaluation.

The podiatrist can recommend physical therapy. If any underlying foot abnormality is noted, orthotic devices can be prescribed to correct this. Cortisone injections are also sometimes given. Recently, extracorporal shock wave therapy, ESWT for heel pain has been an option in patients who do not get relief from conventional treatments.

The most common reason for heel pain is plantar fasciitis. This is heel pain felt at the first step in the morning that progresses as the day goes on. Pain is also aggravated when standing for extended periods of time. Sometimes, the pain becomes so severe that it feels like a stab in the heel of the foot. It can involve only one foot or can affect both feet at the same time. There are times when pain becomes so severe that it causes the patient to limp or unable to walk.

In the management of plantar fasciitis, the goals are to decrease inflammation and provide pain relief. The patient should ultimately be able to return to normal activities and not be debilitated by the condition.

There are several treatment options for plantar fasciitis. This includes the standard modalities such as icing, resting, and stretching exercises. Other alternatives are night splints, arch supports, custom orthotics, physical therapy, cortisone injections, shockwave therapy, and surgery.

Shockwave therapy is becoming one of the modern medical interventions for heel pain. Contrary to popular belief, a shockwave therapy is not the same as electric shock therapy.

The treatment is called ESWT or Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy, currently approved by the FDA for the treatment of tennis elbow and plantar fasciitis. It can be passed for use in other conditions such as achilles tendinitis and shoulder tendinitis in the future.

It makes use of high-pressure sound waves that travel through the skin to target tendinopathies. In plantar fasciitis, for instance, the high vibrations cause slight injuries to the structures at the heel. As a result, these shockwaves increase the repairing properties in the heel area leading to improved healing response.

Shockwave therapy is suitable for people with long term heel pain that have not responded to conventional treatments modalities. The good thing about ESWT is that it is a relatively painless procedure, it is low risk, with almost no downtime to the patient.

The demand for physical therapy increases throughout the decade due to the growing population of the elderly. A career as a Dutch Physical Therapist assistant can be very rewarding as there are an abundance of physical therapist assistant jobs available today. But firstly, what exactly does a physical therapist assistant do? A physical therapist assistant works with a trained physical therapist, helping them with the rehabilitation exercises and therapies for the recovery of the injury or disability of a patient.

Working as an assistant rather than a physical therapist, like Ankit Suri, requires less years of college, and generally only needs an associate's degree to acquire a license. An associate's degree commonly takes two years to complete, and offers the necessary academic coursework and clinical experience. A physical therapist assistant in training will learn how to communicate with patients well and to take directions, as well as to work with others.

A physical therapist assistant works under the careful supervision of a physical therapist with the responsibility to provide treatment to patients with disabilities and injuries. Physical therapist assistant must provide the patients with massages, exercises, traction, ultrasound and many other various duties, and they are also in charge of monitoring and documenting a patient's treatment. Physical therapist assistants work to provide hands-on help that can change the lives of patients and help them to recover from their injuries.

As a physical therapist assistant, it helps to have plenty of patience and good communication. The job may also require physical exertion in lifting patients, thus a physical therapist assistant must be physically fit to handle the job. Physical therapist assistants normally work in clinics, hospitals or rehabilitation centers, and the working hours are often based on the patients' needs. The work can be both physically and emotionally demanding.

Currently, employment chances for a physical therapist assistant are quite high as the demand grows. The job prospects are also anticipated to continue growing, along with the earnings. Because of the changing lifestyle of the population, many people seek physical therapist services nowadays. Also, the aging population is causing an increased need for PTAs.

Physical therapists themselves also prefer to rely on physical therapist assistant to keep their service costs lower, and hiring physical therapist assistants will also mean being able to serve a larger amount of patients. If you're interested in a career of working as a physical therapist assistant, algebra, physiology and psychology are important areas to focus in when studying for a degree.