Foot pain while walking is not always caused by plantar fasciitis, a clinical surgeon in Taipei said, adding that varicose veins can also cause pain when walking and are more common in women.
Shu Tien Clinic Vascular Surgery division head Yu Tarng-jenn (游堂振) said that a 55-year-old woman who had foot pain, especially when walking, thought she had plantar fasciitis, but her symptoms did not ease after undergoing extracorporeal shock wave therapy several times.
The woman underwent a magnetic resonance imaging scan showing she had varicose veins.
Most people think that varicose veins form in the calves, but when they occur on the sole of the foot the symptoms can be similar to plantar fasciitis, Yu said, adding that the condition is called atypical plantar fasciitis.
He said most people think that varicose veins are visible red, purple, or blue vessels that twist and can also cause pain, numbness, swelling and other easily noticeable symptoms.
“However, because people get sufficient nutrition, collagen below the skin’s surface is usually thicker and the veins are hidden,” Yu said.
Yu said that about 33 percent of women and about 15 percent of men develop varicose veins, which are most often found in people who stand for long hours, such as teachers, healthcare personnel and service industry workers.
Atypical plantar fasciitis can be treated by compression therapy, sclerotherapy or surgery, and patients should discuss with their doctors which method is best for their condition, Yu said.
People who stand or sit for long durations every day should move their legs or let them rest for a while every hour, and seek medical treatment if similar symptoms occur, Yu said.
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
President William Lai (賴清德) has appointed former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) to attend the late Pope Francis’ funeral at the Vatican City on Saturday on his behalf, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today. The Holy See announced Francis’ funeral would take place on Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square. The ministry expressed condolences over Francis’ passing and said that Chen would represent Taiwan at the funeral and offer condolences in person. Taiwan and the Vatican have a long-standing and close diplomatic relationship, the ministry said. Both sides agreed to have Chen represent Taiwan at the funeral, given his Catholic identity and
RSS