Heel pain
Conditions
Interventions
Two groups:Electro-acupuncture and warm needling therapy (acupuncture and moxibustion) used in this study are based on traditional Chinese medicine theory and review of literature, for four weeks, Six
Sponsors
Pok Oi Hospital - The Chinese University of Hong Kong Chinese Medicine Centre for Training and Research (Shatin)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
50 Years to 80 Years
Inclusion criteria
Inclusion criteria: 1. males and females aged 50 to 80 years; 2. heel pain characterized by the pain worsened when standing or walking after getting up in the morning. The pain gets relieved after a while of walking, and worsened after a long period of walking; 3. heel pain with marked tenderness at the plantar aspect and lateral aspect of the calcaneal tuberosity; 4. either unilateral or bilateral heel pain; 5. acute or chronic pain in nature with degree of heel pain experienced upon taking the first few steps rating 50 mm or more on a 0-100 mm visual analogue scale at the time of recruitment; and 6. agreed to sign the informed consent form.
Exclusion criteria
Exclusion criteria: 1. suffering from pain in another area that is severe than heel pain; 2. loss of plantar foot sensation; 3. open wounds or tumors, skin ulceration on the painful heel(s) and surrounding area; 4. documentation of fracture or abnormalities at the painful heel(s) within 4 weeks that are not suitable for the study treatments; 5. acupuncture and/ or moxibustion treatment for the same heel pain during the previous month; 6. expected ongoing co-interventions (medication or alternative treatments, or both) during study period; 7. previous surgery to the painful heel(s) or scheduled to have one during the study period; 8. severe needle phobia; 9. known hypersensitive reaction after acupuncture and moxibustion treatment or an inability to cooperate with the acupuncture and moxibustion procedure; 10. diagnosis of cancer of any nature within 5 years; 11. known severe disease of the heart, brain, lung, liver, kidney, or hematopoietic system; 12. currently on cardiac pacemaker; 13. pregnant, breast feeding or expecting a pregnancy during the study period; 14. known severe psychiatric or psychological disorder; 15. other factors that have been deemed unsuitable for participation assessed by investigators; 16. engage in any other clinical trial during the study period; 17. pending foot-related litigation or disability claims; and 18. incapable to understand and answer the questions of the assessors in the study.
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| First step pain VAS; | — |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| Foot Function Index;Global rating of change (GRC) scale; | — |
Countries
China
Contacts
Public ContactLIN Zhixiu
Hong Kong Institute of Integrative Medicine
Outcome results
None listed