Plantar fasciitis night splint prevents the unrelenting pain you feel when taking your first steps in the morning. It is one of the most effective therapies to treat plantar fasciitis. During your sleep, your foot adapts to the plantar-flexed position. It causes the plantar fascia to shorten and get tense and tight and develop small adhesions. The same happens with your foot and calf muscles. In the morning, they suddenly get stretched as you put weight on your feet. This stretching leads to microtraumas in the plantar fascia and the breaking of its adhesions, which causes intolerable heel pain.

How Do Plantar Fasciitis Night Splints Work!

A night splint works by preventing the shortening and stiffening of your plantar fascia and foot and calf muscles. It keeps the foot in the neutral (90° angle) position at night when you sleep. It combines the rest your feet get at night with healing by increasing the blood flow. Thus new adhesions form in a stretched position, and they don’t have to break when you walk. Plus, there are new microtraumas as well. In this way, your plantar fasciitis keeps getting better over time.

Night splints have two major types, traditional rigid night splints and newer soft sock night splints. Sock night splints are soft, easier, and cozier to wear while providing the same relief as traditional night splints do. However, they are only helpful for mild to moderate plantar fasciitis, and their stretch is not adjustable.

On the other hand, rigid night splints are bulky, heavy, and not easy to wear. But they are adjustable, allowing you as much stretch as you want to make you feel comfortable. You should choose a night splint based on the severity of your problem and look for night splints with the best reviews.

Do Plantar Fasciitis Night Splints Relieve Pain!

Many studies support the claim that night splints are very effective at relieving plantar fasciitis. For example, in a study of 44 patients, 19 patients wore night splints combined with conservative treatment, while the rest did not. Patients were evaluated before and after two months. Almost all the patients who wore night splints saw significant improvements in their plantar fasciitis after two months.

In another study, 37 patients with plantar fasciitis were studied for six months. They were divided into group A and group B. Group A wore night splints in the first month of study, while group B wore them in the second month. Eighty-eight percent of the patients saw an improvement in their plantar fasciitis.

So there is plenty of evidence that suggests that night splints are good at doing their job.

How Long To Wear Night Splints For Plantar Fasciitis!

Ideally, you should begin wearing a night splint for one hour and gradually increase the time as the symptoms resolve. However, you may have to wear night splints for about two to three months to get rid of your plantar fasciitis.