The present work details the creation and analysis of a finite element model of the foot, wherein the plantar fascia was modeled as a viscohyperelastic solid. The objective of this work was to develop a fully functional CAD and Finite Element Model of the foot and plantar fascia for analysis by examining the transient stresses on the plantar fascia through the use of a viscohyperelastic material model. The model’s geometry was developed through the use of image processing techniques with anatomical images provided by the National Institutes of Health. The finite element method was used to analyze the transient response of the plantar fascia during loading. As a first step towards modeling the transient response of the mechanical behavior of the plantar fascia under dynamic loadings, standing conditions were used to analyze the relaxation of the plantar fascia over a time period of 120 seconds (which is the steady-state relaxation time of the plantar fascia). This study resulted in a fully functional model with transient stress data on the behavior of the plantar fascia during loading, along with stress and deformation data for the bones and soft tissue of the foot. The results obtained were similar to that recorded in literature. This model is the first step towards fully characterizing the mechanics of the plantar fascia so as to develop novel treatment methods for plantar fasciitis, and can be applied to future studies to develop novel orthotic devices and surgical techniques for the treatment of and prevention of plantar fasciitis.

1 Abstract The aim is to investigate whether the distal femoral cartilage (DFC), Achilles tendon (AT) and plantar fascia (PF) were different between healthy young women wearing high-heel shoes (HHS) (> 5 cm) and flat shoes (< 1.4 cm). Measurements from aforementioned structures were obtained by using ultrasound. There were 910 measurement parameters analyzed in total. There were 34 women in the HHS group (mean age 31.1±6.4 years; BMI 21.6 ± 2.3 kg/m2 ) and 57 women in the control group (mean age; 29.5 ± 7.3 years; BMI 22.5 ± 3.4 kg/m2 ). Wearing HHS resulted in thickening of the right medial DFC (2.00 ± 0.41 mm) and left AT (4.07 ± 0.48 mm) in women wearing HHS compared to flat shoes (1.96 ± 0.35 mm, 3.76 ± 0.66 mm, respectively). This might be interpreted as secondary to chronic overload. PF thicknesses were similar both within and between group. Our findings have shown significant thickening of the right medial DFC and left AT in women wearing HHS and these changes might be interpreted as secondary to chronic overload. Further follow-up studies are definitely awaited to provide a better insight into understanding the musculoskeletal consequences of this "social" issue ever-existing in ladies lives. The secondary aim of the thesis comprises two case reports: 1. the first is describing the usefulness of MSK...