The comparison of Shock Wave therapy and Corticosteroid injection on the treatment of Plantar Fasciitis

Background: Plantar Fasciitis is a common musculoskeletal disorder, which can reduce physical activity of the affected person. The usual treatments have short-term effects or they can cause adverse effects. In this study the injection of corticosteroid and shock wave therapy have been compared.

Materials and Methods: This was a prospective, randomized and single blind clinical trial. In the physical medicine and rehabilitation clinic of two clinic in Tehran, through the year 2011, 37 feet were randomized to each treatment group. The first group received 40mg methylprednisolone and 2 cc lidocaine 2% and the second group was treated with 3 sessions of rESWT (2000 pulses, 10 Hz, 2.5 bar) weekly apart. The data was gathered by a questionnaire, 1 week, 1month and 3 months after the intervention. Chi-square, T-test and mann-witney U test was used for data analyzing.

Results: In both groups 3 months after the intervention the severity of the symptoms were greatly improved. In short-term (1 month) corticosteroid effect was superior to shock wave’s one (p<0.05). This superiority declined through the time. In other words, the effects of the two treatments measured in the functional scale, didn’t differ significantly 3 months after the initiation of the treatment (p>0.05)

Conclusion: Shock wave therapy can be an alternative treatment for plantar fasciitis.