Efficacy of Short Wave and Laser Therapy in Patients With Plantar Fasciitis

Efficacy of Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy Versus High-intensity Laser Therapy in Patients With Plantar Fasciitis

Plantar fasciitis is a common painful condition. It accounts for 10-15% of all foot painful conditions. Recently, Extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT) was used as an effective method in treatment of different musculoskeletal disorders. High-intensity laser therapy (HILT) is a relatively recent treatment option that has shown benefits in a wide range of musculoskeletal disorders.

Inclusion Criteria:

• 1. Patients will be included according to the diagnostic criteria for plantar fasciitis of the American physical therapy association (APTA) (Martin et al., 2014). This criterion includes pain in medial sole and heel of foot: most pronounced in initial steps after a period of inactivity, it also worsens after prolonged weight bearing, pain during palpation and compression of proximal plantar fascia, limited range of motion in active and passive ankle dorsiflexion, positive windlass test.

  2. Patients will be referred from an orthopedic surgeon with confirmed diagnosis of plantar fasciitis (Bidoki et al., 2024).

  3. Patients with chronic plantar fasciitis (Duration of patient's symptoms will be more than three months) (Riaz et al., 2023).

  4. Patients' age will range from 18 to 45 years (Bidoki et al., 2024). 5. Both genders (Riaz et al., 2023). 6. Localized non radiating foot pain with an NPRS more than 5 on the first step in the morning (Riaz et al., 2023).

Exclusion Criteria:

• Patients will be excluded if they present any of the following criteria

  1. History of previous surgery of plantar fasciitis (Riaz et al., 2023).
  2. History of previous corticosteroid injections (Bidoki et al., 2024).
  3. History of heel pain due to previous trauma or calcaneus stress fracture in the last 3 months (Bidoki et al., 2024).
  4. History of previous lumbar spine surgery (Bidoki et al., 2024).
  5. History of rheumatologic disease (rheumatoid arthritis, diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis, systemic lupus erythematosus, gout, Sjogren disease, enthesopathy, etc…) (Bidoki et al., 2024).
  6. Pregnancy, pacemaker fitted or bleeding disorders (Bidoki et al., 2024).
  7. Wounds, infections or tumors in the treatment area (Bidoki et al., 2024).