Comparison of myofascial release and positional release therapy in plantar fasciitis – A clinical trial

The objective was to study the effectiveness of Myofascial release therapy and Positional release therapy in chronic plantar fasciitis on pain and functional ability.

60 participants with chronic plantar fasciitis were randomly assigned to Group A (Myofascial Release) and Group B (Positional Release Therapy) during the study period of April 2008 to January 2009. The outcome measures were visual analogue scale (VAS) and functional ability in terms of foot function index (FFI). Pre and post session intervention values of outcome measures were noted on 1^st and 10^th day of intervention.

The participants treated within groups showed a statistically significant decrease in pain, improvement in functional ability as per FFI with p<0.0001, but there was no statistically significant difference when compared between groups in decreasing pain (p=0.256) and improvement in functional ability as per FFI (p=0.545) at 10th day of intervention.

Both MFR and PRT along with Ultrasound therapy for chronic plantar fasciitis showed improvement following 10 days of treatment as per significant decrease in pain (VAS) and improvement in functional ability as per FFI which can be used as an effective treatment regime in participants with chronic plantar fasciitis.