title: Sectioning the plantar fascia. Effect on first metatarsophalangeal joint motion.
abstract: A study on the effect of sectioning the plantar fascia on the range of motion at the first metatarsophalangeal joint is presented. Dorsiflexion and plantarflexion range-of-motion data from 18 patients who had no first metatarsophalangeal joint pathology and had undergone an in-step plantar fasciotomy for recalcitrant plantar fasciitis were analyzed. The average increase in dorsiflexion of the first metatarsophalangeal joint after plantar fascia release was 9.8 degrees, which represented a statistically significant increase using a paired t-test. Thus release of the plantar fascia can be considered a potential adjunct to hallux limitus surgery.
authors.affiliation: Northlake Regional Medical Center, Tucker, GA, USA.
authors.forename: Francois M
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Harton
authors.forename: Steven A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Weiskopf
authors.forename: Robert M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Goecker
mesh_terms: D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D005205:Fascia / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000502:physiology; D000071938:Fasciotomy; D005528:Foot; D006801:Humans; D008683:Metatarsophalangeal Joint / Q000503:physiopathology*; D016059:Range of Motion, Articular