Do you experience pain across the bottom of your foot or your heel? Does it hurt worse in the mornings when you get out of bed or after sitting or standing for a while? If so, you may have a case of plantar fasciitis, a common condition that affects one in 10 people.

Until recently, plantar fasciitis was only treated with over-the-counter pain medications, orthotics, foot stretches, and night splints. In best-case scenarios, you could stay off your foot for about a week, giving your plantar fascia — a thick band of tissue that connects your heel to your toes — a chance to rest, heal, and maybe feel good enough to go back to work.

But at Michfoot Surgeons, we combine traditional treatments with new, modern solutions for plantar fasciitis pain, bringing you quicker healing times and a more natural, long-term solution to the chronic pain and discomfort the condition causes.

MLS laser therapy for plantar fasciitis

By taking a regenerative medicine approach to plantar fasciitis, our team of podiatry specialists offer multiwave lock system (MLS) laser light therapy. This innovative laser treatment offers both pain relief and an anti-inflammatory response with no drugs and no surgery.

Instead, the non-invasive therapy combines two therapeutic laser wavelengths that reach deep into your foot to stimulate a healing response in your fascia tissue. With the help of the MLS laser, you can reduce inflammation, stimulate cell signaling for both renewal and repair, and revascularize your plantar fascia.

By enhancing the metabolic response of your cells and increasing circulation to the treatment area, you get an increase in both oxygen and blood to the damaged, inflamed tissue. This increase nourishes your cells and fascia, increasing your body’s natural healing mechanisms.

Although it can take six to eight treatments to fully heal from plantar fasciitis, many of our Southfield patients find a noticeable level of relief after the first treatment. We often combine MLS laser therapy with other approaches, such as stretching and night splints, to bring patients optimal results.

Stem cell therapy for plantar fasciitis

Another innovative and highly effective form of regenerative medicine that works for plantar fasciitis is stem cell therapy. During these cutting-edge treatments, we supply the damaged tissue with stem cells, which can regenerate into the needed cells that help repair and replace your damaged plantar fascia tissue.

Although it’s highly efficient, stem cell therapy doesn’t provide an immediate healing response. After we inject the growth factors, you’re free to return home. The stem cells start to work immediately, improving cellular function and stimulating a regenerative body response. But it takes time for these stem cells to restore the damaged tissue, so most patients don’t notice the full effects until about 30 days post-treatment.

While the regenerative therapy is working to improve how your fascia feels and functions, we may offer stretching exercises, orthotics, or night splints to help you with any discomfort and pain.

Help your plantar fascia heal

When your heel hurts, don’t just treat the symptoms, heal the damaged tissue with regenerative medicine that uses your body’s natural restorative abilities to bring you relief that lasts. Although these therapies are new to podiatry in the United States, we’ve seen positive results with both treatments.

MLS laser therapy is quickly becoming our office’s go-to treatment, giving patients quicker and more effective healing than immobilization alone, while stem cell therapy has shown results as effective as corticosteroid injections, but without the risks involved.

Don’t let heel pain keep you down. Call Michfoot surgeons today to find out more about the new solutions available for your plantar fasciitis pain or request an appointment through this website.