Many thanks to Adrian Pace for the Rapid Response. Although there are space limits, a brief mention of the documented associations between plantar fasciitis and rheuamtological diseases would have been worthwhile in the article and his response redresses this omission. However, when studied with control groups the association is present but weak (1-3) (i.e. many cases of plantar fasciitis without spondyloarthitis and vice versa; overlap is mild). My interpretation is that the two diseases probably share a common risk factor but they are not likely to be causally linked.
1. Falsetti P, Frediani B, et al. Sonographic study of calcaneal entheses in erosive osteoarthritis, nodal osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis. Scand J Rheumatol. 2003;32(4):229-34.
2. Gerster JC, Vischer TL, et al. The painful heel. Comparative study in rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, Reiter's syndrome, and generalized osteoarthrosis. Ann Rheum Dis. 1977 Aug;36(4):343-8.
3. McGonagle D, Marzo-Ortega H, et al. The role of biomechanical factors and HLA-B27 in magnetic resonance imaging-determined bone changes in plantar fascia enthesopathy. Arthritis Rheum. 2002 Feb;46(2):489-93.
Rapid Response:
Re: Plantar fasciitis
Many thanks to Adrian Pace for the Rapid Response. Although there are space limits, a brief mention of the documented associations between plantar fasciitis and rheuamtological diseases would have been worthwhile in the article and his response redresses this omission. However, when studied with control groups the association is present but weak (1-3) (i.e. many cases of plantar fasciitis without spondyloarthitis and vice versa; overlap is mild). My interpretation is that the two diseases probably share a common risk factor but they are not likely to be causally linked.
1. Falsetti P, Frediani B, et al. Sonographic study of calcaneal entheses in erosive osteoarthritis, nodal osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis. Scand J Rheumatol. 2003;32(4):229-34.
2. Gerster JC, Vischer TL, et al. The painful heel. Comparative study in rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, Reiter's syndrome, and generalized osteoarthrosis. Ann Rheum Dis. 1977 Aug;36(4):343-8.
3. McGonagle D, Marzo-Ortega H, et al. The role of biomechanical factors and HLA-B27 in magnetic resonance imaging-determined bone changes in plantar fascia enthesopathy. Arthritis Rheum. 2002 Feb;46(2):489-93.
Competing interests: No competing interests