Researchers in Greece have shown that acupuncture can make a significant contribution to the treatment of heel pain in patients with plantar fasciitis. Thirty-eight male patients were randomly allocated among two groups: the first received ice, anti-inflammatory drugs, and a stretching and strengthening programme; the second received all of the foregoing, plus acupuncture. After two months, pain levels, mobility and function were all significantly better in the acupuncture group compared to the first group. The authors conclude that acupuncture should be considered a major therapeutic instrument, used alongside standard care, in the treatment of plantar fasciitis.
(Treatment of Plantar Fasciitis in Recreational Athletes: Two Different Therapeutic Protocols. Foot & Ankle Specialist, 25 August 2011.)
Author: Robin Costello
I offer traditional Chinese acupuncture in Exeter, from a tranquil clinic a mile from the city centre, and next to the University of Exeter. I graduated originally from the London School of Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine’s 3 year full time Acupuncture Diploma (DipAc) course. I am on the practitioners register of the British Acupuncture Council (MBAcC), a regulatory and professional body with an entry standard of a full three year undergraduate degree level training.
I have worked in a hospital in south west China, deepening my knowledge and using acupuncture and Chinese massage (tuina) as the treatment of choice in its country of origin. I have taught Chinese medicine in colleges, the NHS and at university level. I also practise Qi Gong, and Chinese dietary therapy, that is the medicinal use of ordinary foods, chosen to help achieve particular therapeutic effects in different individuals.
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