FAT PAD ATROPHY!

Hmmm. I am going through the same thing, can't confirm if it is a type of overuse injury. Online it says it should get better with rest. Going to try to get some heel cups.

Cheers

As far as I understand, fat pad atrophy is the deterioration of the cushioning under your feet and affects us all from a very young age already but at varying degrees e.g. if you look at a baby's foot there is lots of cushioning and an elderly person's foot mainly skin and bone.

In a nutshell, I don't think there is a permanent cure for this but a suggested aid is to use gel filled insoles to give you that extra cushioning or see a podiatrist to help with some customised insoles. There is also the surgery option I think... I am interested to hear if you find out more on this? Good luck!

do you get a burning sensation under the foot? Redness? Warmth? Is it worst later in the day?

how old are you, if you are over 50 this aint so weird.

No. I am 30 years old.

No burning sensation just a dull pain. Walking barefoot on hard surfaces is almost impossible.

Even with very cushioned shoes feet start to hurt shortly after walking or standing.

Please help!

Get a pair of ProFoot HaloHeel inserts. They sell them on Amazon. I had heel pain so bad I couldn't walk first thing in the morning. I put these in all my shoes until I recovered. They have a donut hole in the middle.

Are you sure you don't have PF, with the majority of the pain just at the front part of the heel?

Do you have pain when you stand up first thing in the morning? That is how my PF was.

Is it just your heel? You could adopt a midfoot/forefoot strike.

Thank you Fisky, that's a great recommendation. I see the product is designed to surround the heel so that the heel bone is suspended and doesn't touch the ground. That makes a lot of sense and should work for me.

In reply to others I've had PF and its not that, pain is not sharp bur dull, also it gets worse as I go on whereas PF if worst at first.

Also, pain is only in heel and I had already thought about changing heel strike pattern to a midfoot-forefoot strike, will also be doing that. Thanks!

I think I've had this issue. It feels like the fat pad is not there and sometime if I put a lot of weight on the fat pad and twist it would send sharp shooting pains. I didn't want to stand on my heels at all and the pain would be worse at the end of the day. I had to wear big squishy slippers to be able to stand while cooking dinner.

I was reading the Trigger Point Therapy workbook and it got me thinking. So I spent 7 days, 45 minutes each day working mostly on my soleus and gastrocnemius (but also muscles in the front of the lower leg) with The Stick, a tennis ball and some harder objects like a metal flashlight. After I did this the pain was gone.

When I notice the pain is returning I spend some time working on my calves and lower leg.

Put the tennis ball on the ground (maybe elevate it on a book), then putting my calf on the tennis ball, cross the other leg on top for additional weight, and then either hold the pressure or do deep micro rolls. Work a very small area for a minute or two the move the ball to a new spot. Working only a very small area at a time is important.

You can do similar work with the stick. Push/pull deeply and only do micro rolls over a small section, then move to the next section. Rolling the entire length of the calf and rolling too lightly only glosses over the muscles and won't resolve the issue.

If my description doesn't make sense, search for the threads about using a tennis ball for piriformis syndrome and apply the same technique to your legs.

Further, you can get parts of the front lower leg by kneeling on a tennis ball and doing micro rolls. In this case you may need to use your arms lessen the weight.

Additionally, go get a massage from someone who does ART or Trigger Point Therapy.

Hmmm, sounds interesting. Are you sure it was really a thinned or displaced fat pad? What you are describing sounds like treatment for Plantar Fasciitis which can also cause heel pain...

See a good podiatrist who knows runners. An orthotic that "cups" your heel can scoop up what fat you do have and position it better to cushion your heel. I think there is a taping to do the same thing, though that's for fat pad bruises IIRC,

Hi FAT PAD!

I just wanted to write because I feel your pain.

I am 22 years old and have been dealing with fat pad atrophy in the ball of my foot for almost 2 years now. It has changed my life. I was a runner and a gymnast, and am now unable to walk 10 minutes without pain, with custom orthodics.

My pain originally started as an inflammation in the ball of my foot (capsullitis, this eventually healed due to my awesome physio). However, another "doctor" gave me too many cortisone injections (which by the way, didn't help), and voila, my fat pad is gone and will be for the rest of my life. I tried to sue the doctor, but I'm in Canada so its impossible.

Anyway, although I am still really angry about this, I am learning to cope. I have altered a lot of things in my life (eg. got a bike for transport, started swimming). But, I am still hopefully that one day this Graft Jacket thing or some other procedure will be approved. I haven't found yet a success story from someone who has gotten the Graft Jacket.

Anyway let me know how you are doing. You said it has only been three months, so I hope for your sake that it was some other condition, and not fat pad atrophy. But if it is, maybe we can support each other? I have been looking for a while now for someone young who also has this condition.

Jackie

Jackie

recouping from 2nd toe reattachment surgery in 4 months after excess cortisone in both feet ( 2 toes, each foot).

pads are issues i'm looking into.

have had stem cell and looking into other options.

email if you want to chat.

tw

Jackie

recouping from 2nd toe reattachment surgery in 4 months after excess cortisone in both feet ( 2 toes, each foot).

pads are issues i'm looking into.

have had stem cell and looking into other options.

email if you want to chat.

tw

don't stand in place for long periods of time. DO NOT get a job where you're standing. If that means you can't work at target, walmart, or fast food to make money while in school or something, well tough luck, you'll thank me when you can run for the next decades. Oh and do at least 80% of your running on trails and grass. Don't think about racing over half marathon until at least a year after this has healed, unless its off road.

Hi, Jackie,

How are you doing/feeling? I can relate... I have been dealing with chronic foot issues for nearly two years--a simple mid-foot sprain led to a sesamoid fracture, plantar plate tear, two surgeries (including bunionectomy, sesamoidectomy, and second toe fusion), WAY too many cortisone injections, and now a bone contusion in my first metatarsal head due to thinning of the fat pad... I, too, have issues similar to yours, along with post-op issues such as stiffness, excessive internal scarring, and biomechanical issues. I wanted to see if in the past year since you posted, you might be feeling better! Feel free to email me directly if you would like to chat!

Yvonne

It is a relief to find I am not alone with this condition! I have consulted with multiple podiatrists--none offered any help or guidance except to recommend orthotics (been there, done that, continue to do that, need better magic). I'm 63 now, first noticed it 15 years ago, has been slowly progressing, is really crimping my lifestyle and mobility. I no longer look with disdain at people in shopping cart scooters. The pain keeps me from pushing myself too far. If I were neuropathic I'd probably have gone the foot ulcer/osteomyelitis/foot amputation route by now. What flabbergasts me is how little this condition is known or spoken of by surgical foot specialists. Other people my age drop from heart attacks or cancer so I shouldn't whine.

Is it genetics? Probably, but no one in my family ever had such a complaint. Some rare long-term effect of a medication? Could be, but impossible to prove. Is there restorative surgery? Not to my knowledge. I can't imagine what prosthetic or repair could take the extraordinary stresses the fat pads are subjected to.

Hey jackie, i have had Heel fat pad atrophy for maybe 7 years. I am 27. I had been to 5 podiatrists with the last one i been to finally diagnosing me correctly! I live in south texas and had to travel north to go to a good doctor and actually got surgery. The surgery didnt help much. But to say the least Heel fat pad atrophy has completely changed my life! I used to always be active skateboarding or playing basketball but now its difficult to stand. What i have done that has helped TREMENDOUSLY is taping it. BUT, taping it right. Ill post a link on the bottom. Email me at

wonderfulee_87@yahoo.com

if you have questions or want to talk about it as i can relate to ur pain :/

https://youtu.be/vJ75LTKZ1i0