European Journal of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences

COMPARISON OF ACTIVE RELEASE TECHNIQUE VERSUS INSTRUMENT ASSISTED SOFT TISSUE MOBILIZATION ON PAIN AND FUNCTION IN SUBJECTS WITH PLANTAR FASCIITIS

Mohammed Faridha Munny*, Rayudu Geetha Mounika, Patchava Apparao and Ganapathi Swamy Chintada

ABSTRACT

Background and Objective: Plantar fasciitis is a common musculoskeletal, occupational or sport related repetitive strain injury and is one of the most common causes of heel pain. Despite its wide distribution in the sporting and general communities, there is a lack of reliable treatment outcomes. The objective of the study was to assess the effectiveness of Active Release Technique and Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization on pain and function in subjects with plantar fasciitis and to compare them. Methods: Quasi experimental study design. In this study there were 72 subjects with an average age of over 30 years with a clinical diagnosis of plantar fasciitis and are divided into two groups randomly. The subjects in Group A (n= 36) received Active Release Technique, While in Group B (n =36) received Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization. Intervention was given to participants thrice a week for four weeks. The VAS for pain and 17- Italian FFI scale for function were used to assess the interventions effectiveness. Results: An Independent „t‟ test was used to compare the mean significance difference between continuous variables. Paired „t‟ test was used to assess the statistical significance difference between pre and post scores. Statistical analysis of this data revealed that both groups were significantly improved in both parameters when compared within groups, but when compared between groups, the instrument assisted group improved better than the active release group. Conclusion: The findings of the study concluded that a 4 week intervention of both Active Release Technique and Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization have shown statistical significance in reducing pain and improving function in subjects with plantar fasciitis. However instrument assisted soft tissue mobilization technique is more effective when compared with Active Release Technique.

Keywords: Plantar fasciitis, Instrument assisted soft tissue mobilization, Active release technique, foot function index questionnaire.