Doc, I got a heel spur

That is one of the most common things I hear every day in my clinic.  Most of us will be affected by heel pain at one time or another in our life.  While it is true that many people do in fact have heel spurs on xray, more often than not the spur is a red herring and not the true source of pain.  The heel pain that we suffer from is usually from plantar fasciitis.  The plantar fascia is a thick band of tissue that runs from the heel to the balls of your feet.  With plantar fasciitis, the tissue becomes inflamed and painful.  The pain can be quite severe and disabling.  Although the condition may persist for months or years in some cases, it is generally self limited.  Simple stretching techniques are usually quite effective.  Other conditions can mimic plantar fasciitis, including stress fractures of the calcaneus or heel bone.  A thorough history and physical examination is usually all that is required to make the diagnosis.  Here is a very nice study on plantar fasciitis treatment from the Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery: http://www.ejbjs.org/cgi/content/abstract/88/8/1775