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Plantar fascia inflammation (or medically fasciitis plantaris) is one of the most common causes of sole and heel pain. Beneath the skin of your sole runs a thick connective tissue sheet (formerly called fascia) from the toes to the heel bone. Its inflammation mainly occurs where it meets the bone, that is, at the heel bone or in front at the bases of the toes. The first symptom is a stabbing pain during the first steps in the morning. After a few steps it "warms up", but over time the pain lasts for increasingly long periods. It is very hard to "get rid" of. It can be treated at home, but be prepared for weeks — and more often months — of regular treatment to achieve full resolution.

Anyone who has seen a blood pressure measurement might think nothing could be simpler. That's not always the case, and knowing a few basic rules can protect you from incorrect measurement results that could lead to a wrong diagnosis or unnecessary or inappropriate treatment.

In the series about professionals, I now introduce physiotherapy specialist, personal trainer and spinal expert Angi Nimród, who after a severe car accident — having been declared disabled — worked on her own rehabilitation for five years. That experience inspired her to help others as well. She has earned respect in the profession and is a member of the board of the Massage Therapists Association. She mainly treats spinal patients, but because of her reputation athletes also line up with various complaints.

Strengthening the thigh muscles may be necessary for many reasons. Reversing muscle mass loss after a prolonged illness or fracture, treating muscle atrophy, and increasing the stability of the knee and hip joints are the most common reasons. In this article you'll find a generally applicable, 3-month program that helps strengthen your thigh muscles without increasing pain or risking surgery. I explained in earlier articles why this is effective, so here I will focus only on outlining the treatment steps.

Gábor Czene lost his right leg in a road motorcycle accident at the age of 25. For years he believed that was the limit of his mobility and sport. But things turned out differently....

Kalamász “Raszika” Zsanett recently successfully completed her first marathon (Sri Chinmoy Marathon Lázbérc, 4 hours 51 minutes). Raszika is a yoga instructor and, besides yoga, running is her “second love.” She began preparing roughly two years ago, running 50–70 km per week. So far it sounds straightforward, but about a year ago she developed foot pain while running that did not go away — by spring it had worsened so much that she underwent manual therapy and received softlaser, cryo and shockwave treatments, yet her complaints persisted. That’s when she started using a Runner Pro electrotherapy device regularly.

Dear Doctor! I read your articles. I turn to you as my last hope. My vertebrae are coming apart, I can hardly move and no one helps. The rheumatologist won’t even examine me anymore and didn’t give me any pain relief. My GP talks about surgery, which I’m terrified of on the one hand, and on the other hand I can’t afford. Please, if you could help me so I could walk down the street once more without a walker, I would be extremely grateful.

Summer is here! We get into a car, bus, train or plane and visit resorts and sights. Prolonged sitting during travel can be dangerous and favors the development of thrombosis.

The word stress has become something of a "curse word" these days — in most cases you probably think of something negative. Yet the original purpose of stress is self-protection. To quickly resolve a dangerous situation, it activates your body with explosive speed. Because of it you can exert forces and perform movements you otherwise couldn't — which can be very useful in certain situations. However, if you're exposed to chronic stress, your body constantly feels threatened and this constant emergency readiness has negative effects on your system. A range of unexplained and treatment-resistant complaints can be traced back to stress.

If you see a doctor about a complaint, your physician will begin a kind of "investigation." They search for measurable, visible, tangible — that is, "well-defined" — identifiable changes until they find something that seems to confirm their suspicion. After an accident, an X-ray is taken, and if a fracture is visible in the bone, the diagnosis is made. However, a large portion of illnesses do not present such clear-cut signs. You may undergo a multitude of tests and still no abnormality is detectable: the X-ray is normal, lab values are not elevated, and other tests do not show deviations. Often chronic stress is behind such cases — something you rarely think of... and, unfortunately, many doctors don't either.

Peyronie's disease is a disorder affecting the penis. Hard nodules form in the penis, causing an increasing curvature. In some cases it is painful and in advanced stages can make sexual intercourse impossible. Nevertheless, only a small proportion of those affected see a doctor because of embarrassment. If you notice such symptoms, consult a physician – a urologist or andrologist is appropriate. The sooner you start treatment, the greater your chance of stopping its progression or eliminating the complaint. Read the details!