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84 of 89 found the following review helpful:
 Night Splints 101 Dec 15, 2010
By Forrester
Some comments about night splints for people with plantar fasciitis:
What's the purpose of a night splint? One of the hallmark symptoms of plantar fasciitis is that you have excruciating pain when you take your first steps in the morning. Why does this happen? Because the plantar fascia TIGHTENS over night as you sleep. So, when you get out of bed and put your bodyweight on your foot, well, this suddenly stretches it and..... ouch!
What does a night splint do and how does it work? Night splints keep the plantar fascia STRETCHED OUT all night. So, because the plantar fasciia STAYS stretched, you can get up in the morning and start walking without pain. Even more importantly, because you haven't stepped on a tight plantar fascia in the morning, which irritates it and damages it even more, you've eliminated further stress- which gives it a chance to heal.
Do they work? Yes. As summarized in the book The 5-Minute Plantar Fasciitis Solution, there are numerous clinical trials that have shown that night splints are indeed quite effective at getting rid of plantar fasciitis.
If you're up for trying this treatment for your plantar fasciitis, be aware that you have to wear a night splint ALL night long for it to really work, so, pick one that looks like something you could actually sleep in. The BIRD & CRONIN PLANTAR FASCITIS SPLINT MEDIUM is a little bulkier than some, such as the Futuro brand- BUT THEY ALL DO THE SAME THING. It's simply a matter of finding the most comfortable one for you. Some of the things I do like about this particular model is:
-has lots of nice soft padding for comfort and protection against skin irritation
-fits either the right or the left foot
-available in different sizes
23 of 23 found the following review helpful:
Pain Free for the First Time in a Year Apr 09, 2010
By davetradedave
"davetradedave"
Thanks for the previous reviews to convince me to purchase this product. I have achilles tendonitis and a heel spur on my left foot. The pain is (was) an inch from the bottom of my heel just left of center.
I have had days recently where I limped all day because of the pain. I have been wearing the brace at night for about 4 weeks. I have had several 'pain free' days in the past week for the first time in a year. The first steps out of bed are just 'tender' at worst.
The brace is slightly awkward in bed but you get used to it. I keep the velvro super loose because of comfort and it still works like a champ.
This product has done more for me in 4 weeks than sixteen 45-minutes sessions of physical therapy.
I'm a coach, balloonist, and 38 year old school teacher and am pumped up about the prospect of lots of physical activity with my 4 and 6 year old kids again. Wow.
84 of 98 found the following review helpful:
Extensive Plantar Faciitis Review Jun 21, 2010
By Dustin R.
I'm going to make this as extensive as possible to try and help others out. I wish someone had told me what I know now.
I've been suffering from plantar fasciitis for about 5 months now in my right foot. About a year ago I noticed the fallen arch in my right foot and began experiencing knee pain related to the flat foot. I've been wearing Super Feet insoles since then and everything seemed fine. After a long period of flip-flop wearing and running, I developed PF in the same foot and have been in pretty incredible pain since then. I went to my podiatrist who gave me a cortisone injection and for about a week my foot was fine. The pain slowly started back and unfortunately my whole leg began to hurt because of the odd way I was walking to prevent the pain.
After doing some online research and with the blessing from my podiatrist that my insoles were great I began a buying binge on Amazon for any and all potential cures. I tried the 5-minute PF solution, heel cups, archxercizer, and pro-stretch. I did not have any luck with the archxercizer, heel cups, PF solution. I'm not saying anyone else won't, but simply they didn't work for me. The heel cups weren't hitting the right spot, the PF solution didn't give me the feeling I was supposed to be experiencing from the stretches, and the archxerciser was just awkward.
The pro-stretch did provide short term relief by stretching out my calf, but the pain would usually creep back within a few minutes. This also didn't alleviate the terrible first step out of bed pain that typically accompanies PF. I've been trying this night splint for about a week and while I originally had a lot of problems getting the fit right, has been wonderful. The first time I wore it, my foot kept going numb because of pressure from the straps. I encourage you to keep at it, eventually you'll find the fit that lets you sleep all night with it on. I've now had three pain free morning that lead to fairly pain free days after wearing the night splint. No pain walking around in the morning and continued throughout the day. I can't tell you how thrilled I am by the results. It's a bit soon to write this review, since I don't know how long I'll have to continue to wear before the results stick. Rest assured if my thoughts on this product dip at all, I will revise.
Hope this helps.
25 of 28 found the following review helpful:
 Uncomfortable and ineffective Nov 14, 2010
By L. Wolf
"ldub"
Before seeing a podiatrist, my primary care doc suggested a night splint. Based on user reviews, I purchased this one.
I used this product for a week, and could never sleep through the night. No problems with circulation, but in the middle of the night, the pressure from the bottom plate against the ball of my foot would become unbearable. I tried different tension adjustments, but never got it right. Also a big hassle if you need to get up in the middle of the night for anything, since you can not walk on it. It's a little cumbersome with all the velcro straps.
When I did see a podiatrist, he said night splints don't work. He recommended Superfeet inserts (superfeet.com) and some physical therapy exercises (see below). Within a week, I'm feeling 90% better.
You can get Superfeet on Amazon.com but I'd recommend looking for a shoe store that carries them, where they can fit you properly. I've come to understand that every case of plantar fasciitis is a little different, but after several weeks of pain and false starts, here's what is finally working for me:
1. Superfeet inserts
2. 5 minute calf stretch (per leg) before getting out of bed each morning, using a belt
3. 5 minutes (per foot) of the massage ball before getting out of bed
4. After work, massaging the foot by rolling it along a frozen water bottle for 10 min
5. Standing calf stretches for 2 min per leg
6. 5 more minutes of the massage ball before going to bed.
You can find the stretches online. Look for ones that stretch both the gastroc and soleus muscles of the calf. Hamstring and quadricep stretches are helpful too.
I've learned that even if you're feeling better, you should continue with at least some of the exercises. It can take months, even years to completely heal. Hope this helps.
12 of 12 found the following review helpful:
 Helped me, but could be better Feb 22, 2010
By Tex
This splint is a bit tough to fit. If you fit it too snug, your heel rises (which is the opposite of what you're trying to get), and the toes get numb. Still, it really did help me a lot. I don't want to plant false hope in anyone, but it's night and day the way my heel feels now as opposed to pre-splint. So I would say get a splint for sure; if it's this one, then size up (it runs very small); and don't fit it too tight. Good luck.
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