San Antonio Podiatrist Offers Advanced Technologies to Treat Heel Pain

April 10, 2011 - PRLog -- Heel pain is one of the more common concerns that bring patients to the podiatrist's office.  It occurs to professional athletes, joggers, people who work on their feet and just to many trying to get some exercise to stay in shape or lose weight.

The most common cause of heel pain is plantar fasciitis, although there are many other causes.  A website with a listing of causes is http://www.heelpain.pro/

Plantar fasciitis can be a simple strain of the fascia, the thick band of tissue that goes from the base of the heel to the ball of the foot.  Acute plantar fasciitis is an overuse injury and is often self limiting, treatable with rest, ice, massage and anti-inflammatory medications.

Dr. Davis often sees patients who have had heel pain for months, occasionally years, who have not been helped with the aforementioned treatment.  The "gold standard" to examine the fascia is diagnostic ultrasound.  Ultrasound can not only help establish the diagnosis of plantar fasciitis but help establish if the condition is acute, chronic or even degenerative.  Lonstanding heel pain often involves degeneration of the fascia, more accurately termed plantar fasciosis.

http://www.southtexaspodiatrist.com/

Plantar fasciosis, previously called, "intractable plantar fasciitis" was treated surgically by cutting the fascia.  Such treatment involved a long recovery period and uncertain results.

New and more successful technologies are either non-invasive or minimally invasive.  ESWT or extracorporeal shockwave therapy is non-invasive as are laser treatments.  PRP or platelet rich plasma is minimally invasive as is the Topaz procedure,  http://www.topazprocedure.com/

ESWT was discovered in Germany in the late 1980s.  It involves the application of pressure waves or sonic shockwaves to diseased tissue which induces the body to replace the diseased tissue with healthy tissue.  It has better than an 85% success rate for plantar fasciosis but is ineffective for plantar fasciitis. Again, it is imperative that the diagnosis of plantar fasciosis vs. fasciitis be established by diagnostic ultrasound.  The success rate for achilles tendinitis is higher yet, in the low 90s.

ESWT, when first introduced to the United States about 12 years ago was performed primarily with "high energy" machines requiring anesthesia in an operating room.  The third generation of ESWT machines available in the US such as the Swiss Dolorclast utilized in San Antonio by Davis are utilized in the office and generally do not require anesthesia.  The cost of ESWT in the US is currently about 25% of that a decade ago making it accessible to most patients.

The Topaz procedure, http://www.topazprocedure.com/ , is a minimally invasive procedure performed through very small incisions on the bottom of the heel, pinhole size.  The instrument utilized is a small wand through which a radiofrequency is applied to create a plasma field at the tip. The diseased tissue of fasciosis can be significantly reduced with this instrument.  Relatively rapid return to work often occurs as the procedure is minimally traumatic.

Platelet rich plasma or PRP has become popular in professional sports to get players back in the game.  Platelets are blood cells that are involved in the clotting process and contain growth factors that enhance the healing process.  PRP is derived from the patients own blood so adverse reactions to this product are very rare.  PRP can be used as a stand alone treatment or as an adjunct to other forms of treatment in order to speed the healing process.
Dr. Davis often combines the Topaz procedure with PRP.

Low energy laser therapy involves the application of laser light to speed the healing the process and relieve pain.  Davis utilizes MLS laser therapy which involves the synchronization of two wavelength emissions:  http://med.celasers.com/resources/mls-videos

The optimal treatment or combination of treatments depends on the results of a thorough examination and varies from patient to patient.  

Dr. Davis, has two offices in San Antonio and can be reached at 210-490-3668 or at
http://www.southtexaspodiatrist.com/

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Podiatric medicine and surgery. Over 25 years of experience successfully treating foot and ankle problems.
http://www.southtexaspodiatrist.com/
http://www.heelpain.pro/
http://www.topazprocedure.com/