Sagittal Plane Motion of the Medial Longitudinal Arch Is Unchanged in Plantar Fasciitis

Plantar fasciitis is characterised by pain involving the medial calcaneal tubercle that is exacerbated after periods of nonweightbearing (Tountas & Fornasier, 1996). Although the pathogenesis is poorly understood, lower limb biomechanics or foot types that result in a lowered and elongated medial longitudinal arch have been widely cited as causal factors in the development of the condition (Cornwall & McPoil, 1999; Taunton et al., 1982). There is little experimental evidence, however, linking arch motion to the pathogenesis of heel pain. While Rano et al. (2001), in a radiographic study, reported that 27 of their 59 (46%) plantar heel pain patients had an abnormal arch structure, the arch profile of patients did not differ significantly from control subjects. Similarly, Warren (1984) found no difference in the arch shape of patients with and without plantar heel pain when arch height was measured during stance. The authors concluded that static, clinical measures of arch height were poor predictors of plantar fasciitis in runners.