Two shockwave types go head to head for stubborn heel pain
NCT ID NCT07827638
First seen Sep 18, 2026 · Last updated Sep 18, 2026
Summary
Researchers are comparing two forms of shockwave therapy, focused and radial, for adults with chronic plantar fasciitis, a common cause of heel pain. About 150 participants receive three weekly treatment sessions and then answer questions about pain and foot function for up to a year. The trial asks whether focused shockwave therapy eases heel pain and improves foot function more than radial shockwave therapy, and which treatment participants tolerate better.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- extracorporeal shockwave therapy, delivered as either focused or radial pulses
- What this could lead to
- If one type of shockwave therapy works better, doctors could choose it first for chronic heel pain and spare patients from less effective sessions.
- What could go wrong
- Shockwave therapy does not help everyone with plantar fasciitis, and the two types may turn out to work about the same. The trial is small, so any difference could be modest or hard to confirm.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 150 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Sep 2026
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Sep 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * aged 18 years or older; 2. chronic plantar heel pain for at least 3 months; 3. clinical presentation consistent with plantar fasciitis / plantar fasciopathy; 4. baseline average heel pain of at least 4/10 in at least one heel proposed for study treatment; 5. imaging findings supportive of plantar fasciitis / plantar fasciopathy on either: * ultrasound scan (USS); or * magnetic resonance imaging (MRI); 6. able to understand the study and provide written informed consent; 7. sufficient spoken and written English to understand the study information and complete the planned questionnaires and telephone follow-up assessments Exclusion Criteria: * Participants will be excluded for any of the following: 1. previous ESWT to the affected study foot; 2. corticosteroid injection to the affected region within the preceding 3 months; 3. previous plantar fascia surgery; 4. an alternative diagnosis considered to be the principal cause of the heel pain; 5. current or suspected calcaneal or other relevant stress fracture; 6. relevant inflammatory arthropathy; 7. pregnancy; 8. recognised contraindication to ESWT; 9. inability to provide informed consent; 10. insufficient spoken or written English to understand the study information or complete the planned study procedures where appropriately translated materials and interpreter-supported longitudinal follow-up are unavailable; 11. any other clinical factor considered by the investigator to make participation inappropriate or unsafe
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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