Chronic Lower Leg Flashcards
Define the difference between plantar fasciopathy and fasciitis
ITIS = inflammation
OPATHY = disease/something wrong
What’s a classic symptom of plantar fasciopathy as it pertains to timing of day and pain?
pain is worse in the morning and after any period of time when you’re sedentary and load the plantar fascia
A person has heel pain localized on the plantar side, with pain sometimes spreading and landing on medial side of the heel. What could this condition be and why does it present in that location?
plantar fasciopathy
- plantar fascia acnchors to medial side of heel and spreads into medial longitudinal side (anchors onto calcaneal tuberosity)
Describe the plantar fascia, listing its function and structure
- very tough web of tissue
- helps to support medial longitudinal arch
as approaches the toe it spits into 5 strips/bands past the MTP joints
toe movement may influence the plantar fascia: toe extension lifts the arch of the foot - plantar fascia passively lifts the arch of th efoot to create a rigid lever for pushing off when in extension
What are some potential risk factors for plantar fasciopathy?
- excessive foot pronation (flatter feet population)
- BMI greater than 30 kg/m^2 (obese range, weight could cause you to push on the plantar fascia all the time and pronate
- plantarflexor tightness (limit ability to get into dorsiflexion)
- less or equal to 0 degrees of dorsi
What does insidious onset mean?
sneaks in over time and occupies more space, chronic
what’s another name for shin splints?
medial tibial stress syndrome
List some indications and qualities of MTSS
- insidious onset
- usually very exercise focused (ppl who have to absorb impact in some way during landing are typically affected)
- when not training it usually doesn’t bother ppl
- pain is on medial and posterior aspect of tibia, behind medial malleolus
- length of pain will be at least 5 cm (if pain more in one small spot, more likely to be stress fracture)
What’s an indication of a stress fracture rather than MTSS?
Pain localized to one specific point
Sometimes symptoms can overlap with ones that signal more serious emergency issues. What should you look out for?
- cramping, burning or pressure = ALERT
- neurological symptoms (pins and needles, numbness, tingling) = ALERT
- signs of vascular issue (discoloration, capillary refill/circulation = ALERT
WHY? Compartment syndrome
What is compartment syndrome?
- each leg compartment has it’s own blood supply
- in some ppl this compartment can be constrained, can start to press down on nerve supply and cut it off
- not very common
What are the overlapping hypotheses for MTSS?
PERIOSTOSIS (some kind of inflammation with periosteum)
- can be irritated because soft tissue are pulling on it when you’re running, jumping, landing
*stemming from local soft tissue tensile loading
- MTSS could be BONE STRESS INJURY
- bone stress is coming from impact load
- MTSS could be a result of how bone is responding to it
*response related to impact loading and bony integrity
What is periostitis?
some kind of inflammation with periosteum (what tendons blend into, connective tissue that wraps around bone)
If soft tissues are pulling on the tibia, which ones might be the issue?
- flexor digitorum longus
- soleus
- both pull on deep crural fascia
Describe the function of the soleus and FDL, and how they might pull on their attachments
SOLEUS
- when you land on toes and drop heels to the ground we get dorsiflexion. Gravity wants dorsiflexion, we fight this by using plantarflexors. When plantarflexors lose and contract eccentrically this will pull on it’s attachments
FDL
- also plantarflexor
- toe control
- catches arch a little as comes into medial side, some pronation/supination effects
*both very important in absorbing energy especially when landing on toes. Every time we land and pull on them they pull on their attachments
What happens to the tibia when we load it?
bends a bit posteriorly when we load it, back of bone compresses every time you land