Everyone in the Columbus area’s brackets were busted Friday night after the Buckeye’s surprising loss to Kentucky. It is tough to continue watching the March Madness tournament once your local favorite has been knocked out! Luckily, with opening day right around the corner, the Major League Baseball season offers a new distraction in the world of sports.
Stories of what player has what injury becomes top news for fans involved in making a fantasy baseball team. One player who has made a lot of news for a very common foot problem lately is Scott Podsednik. Scott is a veteran outfielder who has played for the Milwaukee Brewers and the Chicago White Sox and is now attempting to make the roster for the Toronto Blue Jays this season. However, Scott has been suffering from chronic pain heel pain in his left foot and was diagnosed with plantar fasciitis. Plantar fasciitis is an inflammation at the attachment of a portion of the plantar aponeurosis, or plantar fascia, which is a deep connective tissue that is stretched across the bottom of the foot. The portion that often becomes inflamed attaches to the middle part of the calcaneus, or heel bone. Pain on the bottom of the heel is the main feature of this condition and the intensity of pain can vary from person to person. Plantar fasciitis can affect anyone, but is more common in obese individuals, people who are on their feet a majority of the day, & those with limited ankle flexion. As an outfielder, Scott is certainly on his feet for his job and his planter fasciitis has recently become so painful that it will likely cost him his position on the Blue Jays.
A variety of treatments exist for lessening the pain of plantar fasciitis. Conservative or minimal treatments including icing the heel, taking anti-inflammatory medications and stretching the plantar aponeurosis are good starting points to relieve pain. If these treatments do not put an end to your heel pain, it is important to visit your podiatrist to correctly diagnose the cause of your pain. Other than plantar fasciitis, heel pain can be caused by fractures, infections, nerve entrapments and a variety of other problems. If the diagnosis is plantar fascitis, then orthotics or custom night-splints could be issued as the next step in treatment. Physical therapy may also be recommended as part of a treatment plan. More drastic routes of treatment such as casting or surgery can be taken if other methods are unsuccessful. Scott ended up making the choice to have a cast on his foot for ten days and it was just removed this past Friday, March 25. The choice to try a cast was likely after exhausting a variety of other treatment methods. Hopefully for Scott and his fans, the cast will prove to have been effective in relieving Scott’s plantar fasciitis.
Please visit www.ColumbusFoot.com for more information or call 614-885 FEET (3338) to schedule an appointment with a podiatrist in Columbus, Ohio. Columbus Podiatry & Surgery is located on the North side of Columbus, Ohio near Worthington.
