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Plantar fascia softening in plantar fasciitis with normal B-mode sonography

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Abstract

Objective

To investigate plantar fascia elasticity in patients with typical clinical manifestations of plantar fasciitis but normal plantar fascia morphology on B-mode sonography.

Materials and methods

Twenty patients with plantar fasciitis (10 unilateral and 10 bilateral) and 30 healthy volunteers, all with normal plantar fascia morphology on B-mode sonography, were included in the study. Plantar fascia elasticity was evaluated by sonoelastographic examination. All sonoelastograms were quantitatively analyzed, and less red pixel intensity was representative of softer tissue. Pixel intensity was compared among unilateral plantar fasciitis patients, bilateral plantar fasciitis patients, and healthy volunteers by one-way ANOVA. A post hoc Scheffé’s test was used to identify where the differences occurred.

Results

Compared to healthy participants (red pixel intensity: 146.9 ± 9.1), there was significantly less red pixel intensity in the asymptomatic sides of unilateral plantar fasciitis (140.4 ± 7.3, p = 0.01), symptomatic sides of unilateral plantar fasciitis (127.1 ± 7.4, p < 0.001), and both sides of bilateral plantar fasciitis (129.4 ± 7.5, p < 0.001). There were no significant differences in plantar fascia thickness or green or blue pixel intensity among these groups.

Conclusion

Sonoelastography revealed that the plantar fascia is softer in patients with typical clinical manifestations of plantar fasciitis, even if they exhibit no abnormalities on B-mode sonography.

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Acknowledgments

Source of grant support: NSC 100-2314-B-002-011-MY3

Institutional Review Board approval of the study protocol: NTUH 201012114RB

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, National Taiwan University Hospital, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, No.7 Chung-Shan South Road, 100, Taipei, Taiwan

    Chueh-Hung Wu, Wen-Shiang Chen & Tyng-Guey Wang

  2. Institute of Biomedical Engineering, College of Medicine and College of Engineering, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan

    Chueh-Hung Wu

Authors
  1. Chueh-Hung Wu
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  2. Wen-Shiang Chen
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Correspondence to Tyng-Guey Wang.

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Wu, CH., Chen, WS. & Wang, TG. Plantar fascia softening in plantar fasciitis with normal B-mode sonography. Skeletal Radiol 44, 1603–1607 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00256-015-2215-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00256-015-2215-4

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