Plantar Fasciitis Surgery in New Jersey

Plantar Fasciitis is a common yet often debilitating condition that affects the thick ligament on the bottom of your foot, leading to persistent heel pain and mobility issues. A tight ligament on the bottom of your foot that’s slowly progressed to the point of chronic pain and disability has the potential of permanently damaging your ability to even walk without pain. At the podiatry center in Clifton Dr. Velimir Petkov expertly diagnoses your pain and, if you have plantar fasciitis, recommends a rigorous treatment plan to keep you out of surgery. But when that doesn’t solve the problem, he’s the best doctor to perform plantar fasciitis surgery to get you back on your feet and back to your previous level of activity. Call for a clear diagnosis and an end to your heel and foot pain.

Plantar fasciitis is a painful condition that results in excruciating heel pain. It’s often a chronic foot pain condition that’s caused by tiny tears and strains to the plantar fascia, which is the long ligament that runs along the bottom of your foot. Plantar fasciitis is most common among people between 40 and 60. You may be at risk for the condition if you:

• Run or perform other exercises that require consistently hard impacts on your feet
• Have flat feet
• Tend to have high arches
• Have overly tight muscles in your calves
• Suffer from arthritis
• Are overweight or pregnant
• Consistently wear high heels

Your foot doctor in Clifton offers a number of treatments for plantar fasciitis ranging from lifestyle changes and orthotics to physical therapy and extracorporeal shockwave therapy. But if your pain is still significant after six months of these conservative treatments, Dr. Velimir Petkov may recommend plantar fasciitis surgery.

Consequences of Ignoring Heel Pain

Surgery is always the last option. While it’s normal to want to avoid plantar fasciitis surgery, don’t let your fear stop you. Your only chance of being able to continue with your current activity levels may be this procedure. Leaving your feet untreated can lead to long-lasting, chronic pain and permanent damage to your foot.

Making adjustments to your gait to alleviate the pain, for example, can cause foot and ankle fractures, heel spurs and other foot injuries. Eventually, due to your improper gait, you may develop leg and back pain. Chronic plantar fasciitis may even result in your never being able to return to your favorite sports or running routine.

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Plantar Fasciitis Treatment

While there’s currently no plantar fasciitis cure, nine out of 10 people improve within the first 10 months of simple plantar fasciitis treatment as recommended by your podiatrist, such as:

• Ice. Roll your foot over a cold or frozen bottle for about 20 minutes three or four times a day.
• Rest. Temporarily eliminate any sports or activities causing you pain. Avoid running on hard surfaces.
• Medication. Over-the-counter pain relievers, such as ibuprofen and naproxen sodium, reduce the inflammation, and alleviate the pain.
• Physical therapy. Both your calves and the bottoms of your feet require flexing and stretching at regular intervals. Stretch each several times a day for 10 seconds at a time. A professional physical therapist can design an exercise program specifically for your needs.
• Night splints. Most people sleep with their feet flexed downwards. Your podiatrist may prescribe a splint to keep your Achilles tendon and foot stretched while sleeping. The nighttime stretching improves the flexibility of your plantar fascia.
• Orthotics. Your doctor may prescribe generic or custom-fit, arch-supporting orthotics to distribute your weight more evenly.
• Injections. Cortisone steroids have long been used to reduce swelling in the plantar fascia tissue and relieve pain. More recently, scientists have developed platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections in conjunction with ultrasound technology to provide more symptom relief with less risk of damage to your tissue.
• EPAT shockwave therapy. This non-invasive procedure uses low-energy shockwaves to stimulate your body’s natural healing process. Specialists use this technique after more conservative treatments haven’t worked, but before attempting surgery.
• Surgery. The last resort for plantar fasciitis treatment, your podiatrist relies on surgery only after the other methods have failed to provide relief. The procedure involves cutting the plantar fascia ligament to relieve the tension and reduce the swelling. This is an outpatient, minimally invasive surgical procedure.

Patient Experience

Who Needs Plantar Fasciitis Surgery?

At-home treatments or other conservative approaches often work. But if they haven’t given you any relief, you may best be served by undergoing plantar fasciitis surgery. If the pain keeps you from even being able to walk, talk to our top podiatry specialist about the procedure. And if you’ve become disabled and can’t work, surgery can get you back on the job in a relatively short amount of time.

The best candidates for surgical intervention are those who:

• Maintain a healthy weight
• Are willing to wear the appropriate footwear after surgery
• Decrease running routines and lower the level of pounding exercises
• Follow post-operative instructions closely

The Plantar Fasciitis Surgery Process

It’s critical that you receive a firm diagnosis before your procedure. That’s what you get when you rely on the expertise of a podiatrist experienced in the procedure, such as your doctor at Premier Podiatry in Clifton, New Jersey. Dr. Petkov identifies the source of your pain, which can originate in a variety of conditions, such as:

• Nerve entrapment
• Gout
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Bone tumors

Once your doctor determines that plantar fasciitis indeed is the source of your pain, the surgery is a fairly simple, minimally invasive procedure usually performed in the NJ office of Premier Podiatry, which is only about 30 minutes from New York City.

Tiny incisions are made on the bottom of your foot after a local anesthetic numbs the area. The cuts in the ligament relieve the inflammation and tension. Alternatively, you may undergo an open surgical procedure, during which your podiatrist may remove part of the heel bone and smooth it down, allowing it to heal properly once the tension is released.

Recovery and Risks of Plantar Fasciitis Surgery

Following an open surgical procedure, you may wear a walking boot or a cast. You must keep weight off of your foot for about two to three weeks to give it sufficient time to heal. After a plantar fasciitis endoscopic procedure, you can begin walking immediately following the surgery. No matter which process you undergo, you can expect to return to your normal level of activity within six weeks, with jumping and running restricted for about 90 days.

Risks of plantar fasciitis surgery are greatly reduced when you seek treatment from a respected podiatrist such as Dr. Petkov. But rare risks are inherent in any surgery. Risks and side effects include:

• Returning heel pain
• Developing tarsal tunnel syndrome
• Getting an infection
• Developing a neuroma

Physical therapy, prescribed stretching, flexibility, and weight-conditioning exercises and a strict follow-up schedule with your podiatrist increase the odds that you’ll undergo a complete recovery. Don’t hesitate to contact Premier Podiatry today to set up an appointment. Schedule your podiatry appt with Dr. Petkov and begin the processes to fix your plantar fasciitis symptoms for good.

Premier Podiatry: Velimir Petkov, DPM

☎(973) 315-5555

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