People suffering from plantar heel pain (PHP) have worse generic and foot-specific health-related quality of life (HRQoL), a recent study has found.

Researchers conducted a cross-sectional assessment of 50 adult PHP patients with 25 healthy controls. Groups were matched according to age, sex, and body mass index. The Short Form 36 (SF-36v2) was used to measure generic HRQoL, while foot-specific outcomes were measured using the Foot Function Index-Revised (FFI-R), Foot Health Status Questionnaire (FHSQ), and the 100-mm visual analogue scale (VAS) for pain.

Overall, generic physical HRQoL was significantly worse in the PHP group. The overall physical score was significantly lower in this group (adjusted mean difference [MD], –7.9, 95 percent confidence interval [CI], –11.9 to –4.0; p<0.001), as were the physical function (MD, –19.0, 95 percent CI, –27.8 to –10.2; p<0.001), role physical (MD, –21.0, 95 percent CI, –33.4 to –8.6; p<0.001), and bodily pain (MD, –17.9, 95 percent CI, –28.0 to –7.8; p<0.001) scores.

No such effect was reported for general health score and for all the scores under mental HRQoL.

All measures of foot-specific HRQoL were significantly worse in the PHP group. All pain measures were significantly greater (p<0.001), while scores in all FSHQ domains were significantly lower (p<0.001 for pain, function, and general foot health; p=0.005 for footwear). FFI-R scores were likewise negatively impacted by PHP (p<0.001 for all domains including pain, difficulty, stiffness, and overall score).

“While pain and functional impairment associated with PHP have already received considerable investigation, further research is needed to fully understand its impact on mental health, specifically its effects on the ability for an individual to function socially and on the roles that they would normally participate in, including work,” the researchers said.