MARS WELLNESS Comfort Dorsal Night Splint - Pain Relief from Plantar Fasciitis, Drop Foot, and Achilles Tendinitis - Small/Medium

There are no easy solutions when it comes to plantar fasciitis. You have to do the work. Stretch your feet every morning and after periods of immobility. You have to wear insoles. But braces at night can do a lot to help. To prevent the plantar fascia from tightening and shortening. In my opinion, there are three options. Hard posterior braces (boot), soft socks, and hybrids like this trying to give the support of a boot but the comfort of a sock with anterior bracing. The goal is the same, to keep you from pointing your toes as you sleep and letting the plantar fascia shrink. You don't need to pursue crazy acute angles, just keep the foot at 90 degrees. Thats why these socks and hybrids work so fine. They allow you more movement intentionally but won't let you completely rest your foot. The hard posterior braces work the best but for many they are clunky and too uncomfortable to wear all night. It drove me crazy and so I didn't wear it, and didn't get better. For the socks and hybrids approaches I urge you to try several and find what works for you. No solution/product fits everyone. I've found the it's the small differences in sizing and positioning of components between brands are what make for a success or failure. Thats why you see in the reviews everyone loves or hates a product. It all depends on how it fits them. I have literally purchased 8 braces from Amazon and this was my favorite. I found this type of brace to be the best and most comfortable for me. I was able to sleep and move my foot. And it provides a lot more support than just the socks. The heel cup is an important design element but I found it dug into my skin and was uncomfortable. You really need to wear a sock. That made all the difference. The other thing is that per the directions you need to secure the middle of the brace FIRST, and then the velcro strap at the toe, and then the upper leg last. I think a lot of people don't do this and it contributes to their complaints.

This is a very sturdy night splint that helps combat plantar fascitis. It does a very good job of keeping my foot in a flexed position to stretch the muscles and tendons, and I have noticed a significant reduction in heel pain since I began using it a couple weeks ago. It is more comfortable than a couple other braces I have used in the past. The brace along the top of the ankle and foot is very sturdy and is more comfortable than I assumed it would be. The brace is easy to put on and take off. A couple of reviewers have said that the velcro strap that connects the ankle to the toes doesn't offer enough pressure to pull their toes upwards more than 90 degrees. That's correct, however, I don't think this brace was designed to pull farther than the 90 degree angle. There is plenty of air circulation, so my foot doesn't get all sweaty inside the brace, as it did with a brace I used a couple of years ago. The side of the brace is soft, so it is comfortable if I rest my other foot or ankle against it. There is a bit of art in getting the velcro straps adjusted just right, so that they hold the foot firmly in position but don't cut off circulation. One or two nights I pulled them too tight, but the brace didn't entirely cut off circulation or make my foot "fall asleep" with pins and needles. Instead, I just woke up feeling a little uncomfortable under the brace, and I loosened the velcro a little bit. The last time I used a brace, it didn't do the job, and I ended up needing cortisone shots to combat the plantar fascitis. So far, this brace is making my foot feel much better, hopefully better enough to avoid more cortisone shots on this go-round. I assume that over time, the elastic might wear out enough to loosen the brace and make it less effective. But if that happens, given the price, I'll just buy another one. I can get about 3 of these for the price of just one co-pay to see my podiatrist!

Tonight will be my third night wearing these so I thought I'd give early impressions. I have issues with my Achilles tendon and plantar fasciitis. I've googled stretching and exercises and have also added some tools to my arsenal--these night splints being one. Initially I thought they fit horribly. If you think that too, stick with it! It really takes some fiddling to get it workable--still not a perfect fit but workable. Put the boot on without any straps fastened and then start by fitting it at the TOP. It's counter-intuitive but otherwise you'll start at the bottom and by the time you get to the top, it'll be jutting out. I found for the top to fit, the splint had to be pushed down a bit lower on my leg. Take some time playing with the straps and figure that the first night in particular, you'll get uncomfy somewhere because you'll have it slightly wrong. I wore thin socks underneath and the first night I must have the splint too tight over my heels because I woke with them stinging. Took off the splints for the remainder of the night. My feet and ankles were less stiff in the morning, even though I'd only worn the splints for a few hours. Last night, I adjusted the heels better and didn't have to take them off. Feet seemed less stiff when I got up, though I still have the same pain/stiffness issues at other points during the day. Early impressions are that this won't be a quick fix but seems helpful as part of a larger approach. I'll update with later results. Update: I've been using these for a few weeks and even took them on vacation (note: not a sexy look and a little bulky to pack). I didn't do my tendon exercises on vacation (no stairs) and that hasn't helped. Overall these boots are somewhat helpful but my issues continue. I'm still wearing them every night so that says something though. I worried having my feet in a set position all night would be uncomfortable but I can wiggle them around some so that's good. They don't fit me terribly well although I have no basis of comparison--maybe this odd shape is typical of these contraptions. Apparently Walgreens sells night splints and I may check theirs out just to see. Second update: I downgraded my rating to three stars. After six weeks of use, I continue to be frustrated with how these splints fit my feet. There are three Velcro straps to hold the splint to your foot. The middle strap is just too short. It would be less of an issue if the rest of the splint fit better but a short strap going around my heel just limits how much flexibility I have in adjusting the ones around my toe and calf. And given that my heels are sore from PF, I don't want the band behind them to be tight at all, which it is much of the time because the strap is not long enough. I have no basis of comparison with other splints, and I continue to use these but I'm becoming increasingly more annoyed by them. And overall my mornings are less painful but my PF continues unchanged. Sigh.

This is a combined review for the 5 types of night boot/braces for plantar faciatis I've tried over a number of years. I'm sure your millage may varry, depending on foot, leg shape and more. I have large calfs and triangular shaped size 8.5 foot womans. My PF for short started a few years ago when I was working in a hospital and walking miles in it as a chaplain. Not sure why I've got current flare... In my experience the splints that wrap the bottom of your foot are better at getting that critical right angle than those that are on the top of your foot and don't even generally pretend to put your foot at a right angle. Braces with stabilizing, tightening straps on the sides that allow you to flex the foot up are helpfull. Anything which has a picture of a foot on its toes - well just laugh and move on. Futuro Night Plantar Fasciitis Sleep Support, Adjustable - This supports from the top and was a waste. Just useless. Night Splint 90 Degree Plantar Fasciitis Heel and Foot Pain Night Boot Padded (Large) This was too big and I sloshed around. There is a balance in making something small enough you can sleep in it and not get tangled in the sheets, and big enough that it does its job. Maybe in the right size this would have been okay, but I got the large because of the reported calf dimensions and it was useless for me. Comfort Dorsal Night Splint for Effective Relief From Plantar Fasciitis - Small / Medium By MARS Wellness This is now my traveling brace. It packs up small and isn't quite as comfortable or as rigorous in putting my foot at the right angle as my favorite (the Vive) but it is okay. I might padd it a bit to adjust how the velcro touches my leg.... Plantar Fasciitis Splint By Vive - Hard Plantar Fasciitis Night Splint Relieves Inflammation & Pain - Foot Splint Best for me. It is a modest size, has a rubber tread on bottom which means that I feel more secure going to the bathroom at night. The wedge really improves the angle. And you can tighten the side straps for more pressure (believe me a small adjustment does a lot) I really like that the closures on the straps mean you can set tension once and don't have to figure that out again every night. If you don't have large legs you might not be able to get the calf tight enough, but for me it is the best. I ended up trimming several of the straps. I might do another adjustment to the way the velcro touches my leg.... Plantar Fasciitis Night Splint by Vive - I'm not a confirmed buyer on Amazon for this one because I got it (or something very much like it) from my podiatrist. It is middling successful. I just couldn't get more than a 90 degree angle out of it, and it is so high on my leg some sleeping positions are not comfortable. But it is made of a nicer fabric than my 2 favorites (Vive and Mars) so it has that going for it. At the moment I have this by my reading chair and in my current problems am putting it on just while downstairs and relaxing. If you are very sensitive to the fabrics on your skin you might want to use this over my number 1 or 2 Hope this is helpful to you and that you don't have to buy 5 braces to find your winner!

I had high hopes. This looked substantial and supportive in the picture, and when it arrived, it looked the same. Putting it on for the first time, however, the "dorsi-flexion strap" snapped free of the distal (foot) end of the splint--the rivet holding the strap onto the splint broke, and so the strap would not attach at the distal (foot) end of the splint anymore. I wanted to try the splint for fit and comfort anyway, so I could decide whether or not to ask for a replacement. The first thing I noticed was that although I ordered the "large" size, the splint and the attachment straps was pretty small. I wear size 11.5 running shoes--so yes, large feet. But even stretching the attachment straps, the distal strap wasn't quite under the ball of my foot, and the heel strap was stretched to its limit--and squeezing my heel almost painfully from the get-go. Without the dorsi-flexion strap attached, I have no idea how much tension you can put onto the splint to get your foot/ankle past 90 degrees. I definitely could not get enough flexion in my ankle to get a good stretch in my calf & achilles. I don't know if a working strap would have allowed me to get enough of a stretch in my calf & achilles, but I'm not optimistic. There was a lot of play in the straps that attached to the ball of the foot, and so I feel like even had I been able to crank the tension in that strap, the split wouldn't have gotten me enough flexion to stretch like I feel like I need. Finally, the straps not fitting right ended up becoming painful as the night wore on. I woke at 4 in the morning in so much pain from the heel strap cutting into my foot that I had to take the whole thing off. In summary, this splint looked good but ultimately failed in 3 respects: 1) Defective, with strap breaking off upon first attempt at fitting 2) Splint did not provide enough flexion in my ankle to get a good stretch in my calf & achilles tendon 3) Splint was too small, straps fit poorly and painfully So even had the rivet on the dorsi-flexion strap not broken, I wouldn't have gotten any use out of this splint. Maybe it would have provided enough flexion to get me relief from my plantar fasciitis, but given how poorly the straps on this "large" splint fit my size 11.5 feet and cut into my heel, there's no way I would've been able to tolerate wearing it long enough at night.

As a follow-up two years or so following purchase, The symptoms of plantar fasciitis are resolved. The resolution came about by using the brace at night and occasionally during the day while resting; a 1 inch strap brace around the plantar area when wearing shoes; and soft inner soles from the local sporting goods store. It then dawned on me what caused the problem to begin with: Tucked-in bedding. It extends the feet, causing the Plantar Fasciitis. I have not tucked in the corners of sheets and blankets for nearly a year and this accelerated my recovery to the point of being cured. UNTUCK THE BEDDING. A follow-up review, one year or so after purchase and use. This brace did relieve my symptoms of Plantar Fasciitis. I first used it on my left foot which had lesser symptoms. The left was soon symptom free, probably because I dealt with the problem at its beginning. The right is well advanced but soon experienced great relief of symptoms. The splint is most helpful when one is sleeping. Fortunately the splint is small and not bulky. There is not much notice of the brace while sleeping. I discovered that using the brace while relaxing during the day was helpful in keeping the foot bent, further reducing the long term problem of retracted tendons. One can walk very short distances indoors with the splint but I do not recommend it. This is not a walking brace. One reason for not walking in this splint as it increases wear at the heal area. The velcro-like straps are large enough for adjustment and for ease of removal of the splint. After a year of use, the top strap did not adhere as well as the other straps. After a year of use, the heel area has enlarged. It would benefit by more stitching in order to be more durable. The splint is still usable of course. I expected the splint to be serviceable for about a year as is the case with most such devices. Mine is still in service though I will replace it in the fairly near future because a fresh brace works best. This splint does offer relief, though experiences will vary of course.

I developed plantar fasciitis this summer, (too much barefoot walking), which is the kind of pain that will really ruin a vacation. So, I've been on the seach for items to help me deal with it. I tried a hard boot and hated it, so I switched to a soft boot -- which is comfortable to sleep in -- but have no arch support at all, so not very effective. Also, wearing it caused pressure on my heel, causing it to hurt. (Note: Make sure the straps aren't too tight.) Putting my thinking cap on, I set out on a search through Amazon-land to find items that might correct those issues. I came up with a winning combination. First, The soft boot is: "Comfort Dorsal Night Splint for Effective Relief From Plantar Fasciitis - Small / Medium By MARS Wellness," with heel supports: PROFOOT Plantar Fasciitis Orthotics, Women's Size 6-10 (1 Pair), Inserts to Help Support & Cushion the Heel & Relieve Pain. But you'll also need: the Arch Support Brace by Vive (two to a pack), can be worn with most of my sandals, and are even useful when I'm barefoot. I love them so much that I bought a pair for two other people who are also suffering with PF, and boy were they grateful! Using this combo, my plantar fasciitis cleared up in two weeks, and I believe it's because I actually wore the boot at night and the braces during the day AND night; (something I wouldn't have done if they were uncomfortable). I still wear the combination of these items at night, just to make sure I don't backslide! NOTE: I wore the braces so much that I developed blisters! Using some Tubagrip (Tubigrip Tubular Bandage Size D, 10M Box (2 Pack)) fixed that right up. Also -- be careful to use the right level of density inside the Vive braces. They come with three sets of little silicon pads that fit in a pocket in the braces, that let you control the amount of arch support. Pick the most comfortable sized pads until you can increase the arch support without pain. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! Last note: I also found some amazing flip-flops created by an orthopedist, Vionic with Orthaheel Technology -Tide II Flip Flop Sandal. They have great heel cushioning and serious arch support. (They may seem hard at first but they soften up and feel amazing.) I walked all over New England in them this summer with zero discomfort!

Finally! This is my 4th night splint. I have a posterior heel spur and Achilles tendonitis. The doctor gave me a tradition boot type splint, but since the painful protrusion is coming out the back of my foot--that didn't work--can't rest my foot against the hard plastic and I could never sleep with that thing on. Tried a sock type with a strap--the strap bent my big toe so far forward that after wearing it for 2 hrs I had rip it off and my toe hurt for 2 days--and the stupid thing didn't even keep my foot very level at all! Then I tried a dorsal splint, similar to this one, but a little simpler. That sort of worked--my foot angle wasn't where it should be--but it was about halfway there and I could tolerate the thing for the most part. THEN I found this! It has all the best features of the other models and holds my foot in an almost perfect 90 degree angle and doesn't hurt! Very relieved and my foot is finally starting to heal. The heel cup on this is very soft and doesn't need to be strapped tight at all--so it doesn't bother the back of my heel or the inflamed Achilles. The top part that goes around the ball of the foot is a little hard to get on by myself because you have to grab both straps and pull them to the front together--all while trying to keep it on your calf in the right position. It doesn't go on right if I try to put the calf strap on first. I have to get the straps pretty tight--I have a very skinny leg and ankle, but so far no problem with numbness or pinchy pain as long as I stretch it tight slowly before velcroing. I have the strap that goes from toes to leg pulled as tight as it will go. The weird thing about this one is the part that goes over the calf is pretty narrow. It's plastic, not metal so it doesn't bend and it just barely fits on the front of my calf--and as I said I have a very skinny leg. I'm not sure if someone with a thick leg could wear this because of the way it's curved and sort of wraps over and hugs the leg.