Does heel pain keep you from playing outside with your kids, staying active, or enjoying fun activities going on where you live? If you live in or near Long Island, NY, the Long Beach Boardwalk & Street Fair is coming up May 3-4, 2014. It is a great event to support local artisans, crafters and vendors in a beautiful setting. If painful heels might cause you to miss out on a fun event like this, it’s time to find out what is causing it and put a halt to it once and for all.

The heel bone is the largest bone in your foot, and pain in or around the heel is a common complaint. There are actually many different reasons for such discomfort. Finding the source is the first step to finding the right treatment.

Let’s start with pain under the heel. Discomfort in this area could indicate plantar fasciitis, a heel spur, or even a stone bruise. Plantar fasciitis is when the tissue that connects the base of the toes to the heel bone becomes strained and inflamed. Where this band of tissue connects to the heel bone, a calcium deposit can form, which is called a heel spur. A bruise can develop if you step on something hard and impact the fat pad on the bottom of your heel.

Pain at the back of the heel can mean a couple of different injuries and conditions. First, it could be bursitis, which is when the fluid-filled sac (bursa) between your heel and Achilles tendon becomes inflamed. It could also be Achilles tendonitis, an inflammation or tear of the tendon at the back of your ankle. The symptoms of both conditions are similar. For this reason, it is important to have a thorough evaluation to obtain a proper diagnosis.

If you are living with nagging heel pain, find out what is going on. We have many conservative treatment options that are very effective in relieving foot pain. Contact Mark Gasparini, D.P.M. at (516) 804-9038 to make an appointment at our office in Massapequa, NY.

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