Investigation of the Efficacy of Myofascial Chain Release Techniques on Plantar Fasciitis

Istanbul Medeniyet University

Status: Not yet enrolling

Conditions: Plantar Fascitis

Treatments: Other: Local Release Techniques; Other: Myofascial Chain Release Techniques

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT05479500

2022/0346

Details and patient eligibility

About

The primary aim of the study is to investigate the effectiveness of Myofascial Chain Release Techniques on pain, functional limitation and quality of life in patients with Plantar Fasciitis. The secondary aim of the study is to create a future clinical projection regarding the applications to be made over the myofascial chain in addition to the generally accepted treatment protocols in the light of the findings.

There will be three groups in this study. Each group will consist of 12 patients aged 30-60 years with plantar fasciitis. A total of 36 participants will take part in the study. Conventional physiotherapy will be applied to the group 1 and, local release technique addition to conventional physiotherapy will be applied to the group 2, while myofascial release techniques will be applied to the experimental group in addition to conventional physiotherapy. Treatment programs will be applied to both groups 2 days a week for 6 weeks. Postural problems that can be seen in the superficial back myofascial chain line will be evaluated.

Full description

The plantar fascia is an important connective structure that extends from the metatarsal heads to the calcaneus and provides the continuity of the longitudinal arch of the foot. Microtraumas and the formation of chronic inflammation on the plantar surface, which is exposed to repetitive stress, thickens the fascia, making it susceptible to repetitive injuries and forming plantar fasciitis. The reasons for this repetitive stress are; excessive physical activity, obesity, age, prolonged standing, biomechanical changes, limited dorsiflexion and hamstring tension.

Studies on this subject in the literature have reported that tension in the hind leg muscles is associated with plantar fasciitis, and applications on the Achilles tendon and gastrocnemius have been shown to relieve plantar fasciitis complaints. Similarly, it has been reported that tension in the hamstring muscle may be associated with the development of plantar fasciitis.

It is known that the Plantar Fascia and Achilles tendon affect each other due to the fascial connection, and therefore these structures are considered together in the solution of their problems. On the other hand, according to the fascial meridian concept developed by Thomas Myers, it was stated that the fascial connection between these two tissues extends to the frontal region in a chain manner, and that a problem at any point in the chain may cause problems in other elements of the chain. For this reason, recently, applications related to the detection and solution of problems have come to the fore by looking at fascial problems more holistically over the fascial chain. From this point of view, there are many studies reporting the effectiveness of applications performed in any region of the myofascial chain in a different region on this chain.

Plantar Fascia; It is located in the Superficial Back Line, and as far as we know, there is no study of plantar fasciitis treatment in which the myofascial chain is considered as a whole. Based on this, our aim in this study is to investigate the effect of myofascial release techniques applied along the myofascial chain line on pain, lower extremity functionality and quality of life in patients diagnosed with Plantar fasciitis. In the light of the findings, it is to create a projection for future clinical studies regarding the treatment approaches to be applied over the myofascial chain in addition to the generally accepted treatment protocols.

Enrollment: 36 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 30 to 60 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Volunteers between the ages of 30-60
• Diagnosed with plantar fasciitis
• Not having received medical treatment and/or physiotherapy for plantar fasciitis in the last 3 months.
• The participants' definition of pain over 3 according to the Visual Analogue Scale in the first step of the morning and this pain decreases with movements

Exclusion criteria

• Having history of lower extremity surgery and fracture in the last 6 months
• Having additional orthopedic, neurological and rheumatological diseases that may cause biomechanical malalignment, loss of muscle strength, and deterioration of gait parameters in the lower extremities, vertebral column and pelvis
• Having static foot deformity
• Having connective tissue disease that will affect tissue properties
• Having metabolic syndromes that may affect tissue properties such as diabetes
• Using sedatives and/or muscle relaxants that may alter muscle tone.
• Being diagnosed with obesity (BMI>30)
• Pregnancy

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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36 participants in 3 patient groups

Group 1

No Intervention group

Description:

Control group will consist of 12 patients with diagnosed Plantar Fasciitis, aged between 30-60 years. Only conventional physiotherapy program will be applied to this group. Conventional treatment will consist of foot intrinsic muscles strengthening, plantar fascia, achilles and hamstring stretching exercises. The exercises will be performed as 10 repetitions and 3 sets. Participants will be treated for a total of 6 weeks, 2 days a week. Each treatment session will last 20-40 minutes.

Group 2

Experimental group

Description:

Experimental group will consist of 12 patients with diagnosed Plantar Fasciitis, aged between 30-60 years. In addition to the conventional physiotherapy program, local release techniques will be applied to this group. Local Release Techniques will be applied as Gastro-solues trigger point myofascial release and Plantar fascia myofascial release. Participants will be treated for a total of 6 weeks, 2 days a week. Each treatment session will last 20-40 minutes.

Treatment:

Other: Local Release Techniques

Group 3

Experimental group

Description:

Experimental group will consist of 12 patients with diagnosed Plantar Fasciitis, aged between 30-60 years. In addition to the conventional physiotherapy program, myofascial chain release techniques will be applied to this group. Myofascial release technique will be applied to the center of coordination points in the superficial back line myofascial chain of the body. Pressure will be applied to each point with 6 repetitions and lasting approximately 5-6 seconds. Participants will be treated for a total of 6 weeks, 2 days a week. Each treatment session will last 20-40 minutes.

Treatment:

Other: Myofascial Chain Release Techniques