Foot orthoses for plantar heel pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis

• Published in: British journal of sports medicine Vol. 52; no. 5; p. 322
• Main Authors: Whittaker, Glen A, Munteanu, Shannon E, Menz, Hylton B, Tan, Jade M, Rabusin, Chantel L, Landorf, Karl B
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England 01-03-2018
• Subjects: Adult; Fasciitis, Plantar - therapy; Female; Foot Orthoses; Heel - physiopathology; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Pain - prevention & control; Pain Management; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; foot
• ISSN: 1473-0480
• DOI: 10.1136/bjsports-2016-097355

To investigate the effectiveness of foot orthoses for pain and function in adults with plantar heel pain.
Systematic review and meta-analysis. The primary outcome was pain or function categorised by duration of follow-up as short (0 to 6 weeks), medium (7 to 12 weeks) or longer term (13 to 52 weeks).
Medline, CINAHL, SPORTDiscus, Embase and the Cochrane Library from inception to June 2017.
Studies must have used a randomised parallel-group design and evaluated foot orthoses for plantar heel pain. At least one outcome measure for pain or function must have been reported.
A total of 19 trials (1660 participants) were included. In the
, there was very low-quality evidence that foot orthoses do not reduce pain or improve function. In the
, there was moderate-quality evidence that foot orthoses were more effective than sham foot orthoses at reducing pain (standardised mean difference -0.27 (-0.48 to -0.06)). There was no improvement in function in the medium term. In the
, there was very low-quality evidence that foot orthoses do not reduce pain or improve function. A comparison of customised and prefabricated foot orthoses showed no difference at any time point.
There is moderate-quality evidence that foot orthoses are effective at reducing pain in the medium term, however it is uncertain whether this is a clinically important change.