Heel Spur (Subscribe)  

A common foot complaint is pain in the bottom of the heel. This is often referred to as heel spurs or plantar fasciitis. Patient Provider

Conclusions Autologous blood injection appears to be a viable alternative to steroid injection therapy. It appears to be safe and no reports of reflex sympathetic dystrophy, infection or other major complications have been reported thus far. More recent studies have suggested that steroid treatment and fascial peppering with...

Plantar fasciitis is the commonest cause of heel pain. We see about 50 new patients per year in a population of 260,000 or 193/million/year. However, this is only the tip of the iceberg as many people probably never consult a practitioner about this condition, or are treated by a GP,...

Author: Belinda Mahoney
In accordance with management of most foot problems, surgical treatment of plantar fasciitis or heel spur syndrome is indicated only after all conservative measures have failed. Conservative management includes corticosteroid injections, orthotic therapy, orthopaedic taping and padding, physical therapy, iontophoresis, stretching and/or flexibility programs, rest, immobilisation (below knee...

D. Kane, T. Greaney, B. Bresnihan, R. Gibney, and O. FitzGerald Ann Rheum Dis. 1998 June; 57(6): 383–384.
CONCLUSION—Ultrasound allows for confirmation of the clinical diagnosis and ultrasound guided injection produces a good clinical response when unguided injection is unsuccessful. The technique is quick, inexpensive, and entails no radiation exposure.

"The RCT identified by the review gave no information on harms. Corticosteroid injections can be painful. Complications observed from local corticosteroid injection throughout the body include infection, subcutaneous fat atrophy, skin pigmentation changes, fascial rupture, peripheral nerve injury, and muscle damage among others. Observational studies have reported rupture of the...