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Bone spurs are extra growths that appear on various bones throughout the body. You may have several bone spurs and not even know it because they don't always cause symptoms. However, getting a bone spur on your heel or foot can be incredibly bothersome.
Heel spurs can lead to severe pain and even trouble walking, affecting your normal activities. But what caused the bone spur in the first place, and what can you do to eliminate it?
If you're struggling with heel pain or foot pain, Dr. Jeffrey E. McAlister and the Phoenix Foot and Ankle Institute team provide cutting-edge treatments and compassionate care to give you relief.
Dr. McAlister is a foot and ankle specialist who offers treatments for a wide range of foot and ankle problems, including heel pain. These include minimally invasive surgery, regenerative medicine, and shockwave therapy.
Bone spurs, also called osteophytes, are excess bone growths on the surface of the bone. They often appear as bumps.
Bone spurs form in common areas, such as the heels and spine, which take on a lot of stress daily. They also form where bones meet in the joints.
Not everyone with a bone spur has symptoms — in fact, many people don't even know they have them. Because bone spurs develop over time, many people don't have symptoms until the spur begins to irritate the tissues, causing pain and inflammation.
Your body forms bone spurs as a response to stress and damage – kind of like a scar made of bone. The overgrowth is the body's attempt to heal damage during a process called osteophytosis.
One of the prevalent places people get bone spurs is on the heel, which takes a lot of wear-and-tear. The spur forms where the plantar fascia tissue along the sole connects to the heel bone, often causing symptoms like heel pain and stiffness.
But why do people get heel spurs? One of the leading causes is plantar fasciitis. When you have plantar fasciitis, overuse causes the plantar fascia to tear or overstretch.
The result is inflammation in the heel, which leads to pain, stiffness, and discomfort when walking. The body's response to the inflammation is excess bone formation at the area where the plantar fascia meets the heel.
Plantar fasciitis isn't the only reason for bone spurs in the foot. Any condition that causes tissue damage or inflammation can lead to the formation of a bone spur. Other causes of bone spurs include:
Because of long-term wear-and-tear, you're more likely to have bone spurs as you age. However, any injury to tissues around a bone can lead to a bone spur, especially in the foot and heel.
Unfortunately, once a bone spur forms, you can't simply eliminate it. The only way to get rid of a bone spur is through surgery, but there are other measures you can take to reduce the symptoms.
The treatment for a heel spur is similar to the treatment for plantar fasciitis – because they're linked. If you have a heel spur, Dr. McAlister often recommends conservative therapies, which include:
It’s important to change your activities, specifically those that put pressure on the heel spur and plantar fascia. Choosing shoes that don't rub the back of the heel may also help eliminate pain.
Although conservative treatments help the symptoms of heel spurs, they don't eliminate the problem. If your symptoms persist, Dr. McAlister may recommend surgery to correct the problem causing the heel spur.
Many people don't need surgery just for a heel spur; Dr. McAlister removes it as part of a procedure to fix the underlying problem, like plantar fasciitis. He utilizes minimally invasive approaches when possible.
During surgery, Dr. McAlister fixes the reason for your pain and removes the heel spur. After recovery, you should follow physical therapy guidelines to avoid another heel spur from forming.
Call Phoenix Foot and Ankle Institute today to schedule a heel spur or plantar fasciitis appointment, or request a consultation on our website.
