Clinical results of ultrasound-guided intra-arterial embolization targeting abnormal neovessels for plantar fasciitis: 66 cases with up to 4 years of follow-up.

Background: Plantar fasciitis (PF) is the most common cause of chronic heel pain, affecting young and older patients.
Methods: This retrospective study included patients with PF refractory to conservative treatment who underwent intra-arterial embolization of abnormal neovessels. All patients received temporary embolic material through a needle percutaneously inserted into the posterior tibial artery. The numeric rating scale (NRS) pain score, American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) score, and procedure-related adverse events were evaluated.
Results: Between January 2020 and February 2022, 66 patients with PF were treated with intra-arterial embolization without major adverse events. The NRS pain score improved significantly, and the AOFAS score increased from 65.8 pre-treatment to 92.8 at 1 year post-treatment. The treatment effect was maintained until the final follow-up (mean duration: 30.9 months).
Conclusions: Ultrasound-guided intraarterial embolization using temporary embolic material may be effective for PF.
Level of Evidence: IV.
Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Yuji Okuno has received consulting fees from Asahi Intecc and lecture fees from Terumo and Daiichi Sankyo outside the submitted work. The rest of the authors declare no conflicts of interest.
(Copyright © 2024 European Foot and Ankle Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)