Heel spur and Why you don’t have one by Dr Brenden Brown - Podiatrist
Transcript
So let's talk about do heel spurs actually cause pain? Guess what? The answer is probably not. Most pain in your heel is actually a result of soft tissue injury. That's right. The tendons, muscles, or nerves around your heel are the reason for the pain, and not the bony spur at all.
Now, how do we know this? There's stacks of ways and one of them is research. So we've done loads of research that actually shows that on taking x-rays of oodles of people, we've found that despite lots of people having x-rays, only a very tiny percent of those people actually have any pain. Now, if the spur causes the pain, shouldn't they all have pain? Hmmm, yeah, you see, that's one of the reasons why we know that most heel spurs don't cause pain.
Now what else do we know? Heel spurs don't come and go, right? Once you've got a heel spur, it's there the whole time. It's not going to come and go like the cast of "Neighbours." No one's moving to Queensland to get a job, right? Okay, so your spur is not going to suddenly appear and not appear, but that's what often happens with pain in your heel.
So again, that's a classic example of why it's most likely not a result of the heel spur.
The second thing that people often tell me is that they had a heel spur but it dissolved or it went away, or they smashed it with a Bible. Hmmm, again, I've got to tell you, in 20+ years of doing this job, I've never seen one that's dissolved, and I've never seen a successful smashing of a Bible on the spur. So it's most likely, again, not a heel spur.
I realise that there's stacks of information out there and Auntie Bess is going to tell you that it's a heel spur that's causing your pain. Somewhere along the lines, you're going to have to trust me more than Auntie Bess. I hope that helps you with some of the confusion about why it's probably not a heel spur.
Want more information? That's fantastic. There's stacks of videos that we've made. Look down below. There's most likely a link there, or check us out on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, etc., all the normal socials because we've got stacks of educational videos on heel pain and all the other conditions that we look after. Thanks and stay happy, healthy and active.
ABOUT DR BRENDEN BROWN
Founder of A Step Ahead Foot + Ankle Care in Sydney, and former president of the Australasian Podiatry Council, Dr Brenden Brown (A.K.A Dr Foot) is a wealth of knowledge on how to take care of your feet, including how to find the best shoes.
Follow him on social media:
instagram.com/askdrfoot
facebook.com/podiatristsydney
twitter.com/AStepAheadFAC
Related articles:
If you like this video, then check out our other related blog posts and videos:
* No medical treatment can guarantee 100% success. Registered medical and health professions in Australia are by law not allowed to guarantee success. This comes as a result of all human bodies reacting differently to treatments. Patients should thoroughly consider all treatment options available to them.