Introduction:. Plantar Fasciitis is an extremely common and challenging problem that presents itself to foot and ankle practitioners. Many different treatment modalities are available for this condition, with little proven benefit. ECSWT was approved for use by the FDA for the treatment of chronic proximal plantar fasciitis in 2002 and NICE published guidance in 2009 recommending its use in refractory cases. Methods:. Patients who diagnosed with ultrasound scan, and for whom other treatments were unsuccessful, underwent treatment on an outpatient basis. They had three 4–5 minute sessions, once a week. A Spectrum machine was used delivering 10 Hz waves in 500 preset pulses at 2 bar pressure, followed by 2000 preset pulses at 2.5 bar pressure. Pre- and 3 month post-treatment pain levels were recorded using a 10 point Visual Analogue Scale. Results:. 210 courses of treatment have been performed on 181 feet belonging to 135 patients. 46 patients have had treatment to both feet. 121 treatments have paired pre and postoperative VAS scores. 79 had a reduced score post treatment (65.2%), 17 had an increased score (14%), and 24 had a score which remained unchanged (19.8%). 65.8% subjectively felt they had improved. Overall there was an average reduction in VAS score from 7 to 4.975, a reduction of 2.025 points (p=0.000000000151). Discussion:. The majority of patients show a benefit in terms of an overall reduction in pain score, though it is not clear how many patients would have improved spontaneously in that time. However, there is further work to do in terms of a more detailed evaluation of the effect on foot function: anecdotally the treatment may significantly improve start up pain. We would also like to see if we can establish a benefit for the therapy earlier in the disease process

There is no optimal treatment for osteochondral defects of the talus after failed primary surgical treatment. To treat these patients, a 15-mm diameter metal implant was developed for the medial talar dome. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the clinical effectiveness of the metal implantation technique for osteochondral lesions of the medial talar dome. This is a prospective case series. The inclusion criteria were the combination of a large OCD (ϕ >12 mm) of the medial talar dome, persistent complaints >1 year after treatment, and clinically relevant pain levels. The exclusion criteria were: age <18 years, OCD size >20 mm, ankle osteoarthritis grade 2 or 3, concomitant ankle pathology, and diabetes. The primary outcome measure was the Numeric Rating Scale pain (NRS) rest, walking, running, and stair climbing. Secondary outcome measures were: Foot Ankle Outcome Score (FAOS), American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) Ankle-Hindfoot score, and clinical and radiographic complications. The Wilcoxon signed ranks test was used to calculate p-values. Between October 2007 and March 2009 10 patients were included. The median follow-up was 2 years (range, 2–3 years). On preoperative CT scanning, the median lesion size was 15 (range, 12–20) × 11 (range, 8–14) mm. The NRS rest improved from a median of 3 (0–7) preoperatively to 0.5 (0–2) at final follow-up (p = 0.017), NRS walking from 6.5 (4–8) to 1 (0–4) (p = 0.005), NRS running from 9 (6–10) to 3 (0–10) (p = 0.024), and NRS stair climbing from 6 (4–8) to 1 (0–7) (p = 0.012). The FAOS improved significantly on four of five subscales. The AOFAS improved from a median of 70 (47–75) before surgery to 89 (69–100) at final follow-up (p = 0.008). There were three temporary complications: hyposensibility about the scar in two and a superficial wound infection in one. There were no radiographic complications

Background. Plantar fasciitis is a frequently chronic and disabling cause of foot pain in adults. This prospective study aims to evaluate the analgesic effect of ultrasound guided dry needling in patients with chronic plantar fasciitis, refractory to conservative treatment. Method and Materials. Patients undergoing dry needling for plantar fasciitis, followed by perifascial injection between Jan ′09 and Feb ′10 were identified. Pain scores were recorded on a visual analogue scale from 0 (no pain) to 10 (worst pain possible) before the procedure, 2 weeks and 6 weeks post procedure. Patients were also contacted in April to assess their current pain level. Responses were graded as excellent (> 75% pain score improvement), good (50-74%), fair (25-49%) and poor (<25% relief). Any complications or need for any further intervention were recorded. Results. 55 feet (46 patients) were identified. All patients had had no relief with previous treatment. 24 feet who had calf tightness had undergone a gastrocnemius muscle lengthening. All patients had radiological confirmation of diagnosis prior to undergoing the procedure. At 2 weeks: 1 foot lost to follow-up. 43/54 feet had excellent or good pain relief. At 6 weeks: 5 feet (4 patients) were lost to follow up. 37 feet (28 patients) reported excellent or good pain relief. 11/13 feet patients with fair to poor response underwent a repeat procedure. Redo-Procedure. Using the same outcome measures, 8/11 and 9/11 feet had excellent or good response at 2 and 6 weeks respectively. Long-term follow-up:. 42 feet (34 patients) were contacted. 13 feet (12 patients) lost to follow-up. Follow-up duration from 2 to 13 months. Mean F/U = 7 months. 23 feet (5 redos) had excellent or good outcome 19 feet (6 redos) had fair or poor outcome. If symptoms reoccurred, average duration of total analgesic effect was 3 months. Conclusion. 80% and 74% of patients had excellent or good outcome at 2 and 6 weeks respectively. After an average of 7 months follow-up, 55% patients had excellent or good results. In those patients in whom symptoms recurred, the average duration of total analgesic effect was 3 months. We believe that ultrasound guided dry needling is an effective treatment method for plantar fasciitis

While many forefoot procedures may be performed as a day case, there are no specific guidelines as to which procedures are suitable. This study assessed the early post-operative pain after forefoot surgery performed a day case, compared with conventional inpatient management.

A total of 317 consecutive operations performed by a single surgeon were included in the study. Those eligible according to the criteria of the French Society of Anaesthesia (SFAR) were managed as day cases (127; 40%), while the remainder were managed as inpatients.

The groups were comparable in terms of gender, body mass index and smoking status, although the mean age of the inpatients was higher (p < 0.001) and they had higher mean American Society of Anaesthesiologists scores (p = 0.002). The most severe daily pain was on the first post-operative day, but the levels of pain were similar in the two groups; (4.2/10, sd 2.5 for day cases, 4.4/10, sd 2.4 for inpatients; p = 0.53). Overall, 28 (9%) of patients who had their surgery as a day case and 34 (11%) of inpatients reported extreme pain (≥ 8/10). There were more day case patients rather than inpatients that declared their pain disappeared seven days after the surgery (p = 0.02). One day-case patient with excessive bleeding was admitted post-operatively.

Apart from the most complicated cases, forefoot surgery can safely be performed as a day case without an increased risk of pain, or complications compared with management as an inpatient.

Cite this article: Bone Joint J 2015;97-B:1645–50.