Heel pain | Plantar Fasciitis | Calcaneal Spur
What causes heel pain?
Mechanical repeated stress over plantar fascia while walking causes inflammation of plantar fascia and pain.
How does plantar fasciitis| calcaneal spur present?
Patients usually present with plantar heel pain upon initiation of weight bearing, either in the morning upon arising or after periods of rest. The pain tends to decrease after a few minutes, and returns as the day proceeds and as the strain on their feet increases.
Who are prone to heel pain?
Patients with flat foot, obesity, or with reduced subcutaneous pad of fat in heel region commonly prone to heel pain.
How to differentiate plantar fasciitis from other causes?
Typical clinical presentation with radiological investigations helps diagnose plantar fasciitis correctly.
Pain from other causes will have radiating pain, hyperesthesias, or history of arthritis.
How to differentiate plantar fasciitis from calcaneal spur?
Acute presentation is called plantar fasciitis; chronic presentation leads to radio logically evidence of calcaneal spur formation.
How to treat heel pain?
Treat the cause-like reduce obesity (weight loss), to give orthotic or arch support in foot wear, stretching exercises, avoid barefoot walking, using heel cushion pads, corticosteroid injection.
How to treat heel pain when conservative measures fail?
It requires ESWT or surgery like plantar fasciotomy/ calcaneal spur resection.
