How to Avert Foot Pain From Achilles Tendonitis With Insoles
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The strongest tendon in the body, the Achilles tendon, serves to connect the muscles of the heel with those in the lower leg. This tendon is subject to tremendous pressure and in cases of running or jumping it sometimes needs to manage up to twelve times the body weight. When the tendon becomes inflamed and irritated, Achilles tendonitis can develop, causing sufferers a great deal of discomfort and foot pain.
How Does Achilles Tendonitis Develop?
One of the biggest causes of this condition in younger people is overuse of the tendon, often because of a sudden increase in physical activity or because of very tight calf muscles when exercising. Sports that require a lot of jumping, such as basketball for example, are one of the most common causes of the condition with younger people. Inflammation that leads to this condition can quickly develop in cases of physical injury to the ankle, calf or lower leg. Middle-aged or elder people may develop the condition from arthritis, and any form of bone growth in the heel may irritate the tendon and eventually lead to tendonitis.
What are the Symptoms?
Most people that suffer from this condition complain of severe pain behind the heel and of foot pain. The pain is not always acute, but almost all patients experience increased levels of pain when the muscles of the ankle, calf and foot have not been in use for some time. Most patients report tenderness and swelling in the area of the tendon, and jumping or pushing often result in sever, sudden pain. Very few people with the condition can stand tippy-toe.
What Can be Done About the Condition?
Much can be done to treat the condition, and in most cases, the results of treatment using insoles are satisfactory. The simplest form of treatment, and also one of the most efficient, is complete rest of all the muscles in the calf, heel and foot. Many patients use special shoe insoles that lift the heel slightly from the ground, providing immediate relief. It helps to apply ice to the area of inflammation because this will help to improve the blood flow, and it will provide some measure of relief from foot pain. In order to combat the inflammation of the tendon, many specialists prescribe medication and ointments or shoe insoles that help against the pain.
No treatment program is deemed to be complete without some form of physical therapy that aims to not only strengthen the muscles, but also to make them suppler. When every possible treatment method has been tried without success, surgery may be considered as a last resort. Surgery usually involves the removal of the damaged part of the tendon, followed by lengthening the tendon or moving the tendon attachment in the heel.
Can Achilles Tendonitis be Prevented?
Most sportsmen know how important it is to avoid foot pain by using insoles and completing a series of stretching and warming up exercises before they subject their bodies to the rigors of exercise. Flexible muscles and tendons are able to bear much more weight and pressure, and athletes should consider insoles and an exercise regime that will achieve this state.
