Symptom: Heel pain

Introduction: Heel pain

Heel pain: Pain in the hindfoot heel area. See free access online books about Heel pain below. See detailed information below for a list of 15 causes of Heel pain, including diseases and drug side effect causes.

» Review Causes of Heel pain: full list

Causes of Heel pain:

The following medical conditions are some of the possible causes of Heel pain. There are likely to be other possible causes, so ask your doctor about your symptoms.

• Plantar fasciitis
• Calcaneal apophysitis
• Calcaneal spur
• Heel pad fat atrophy
• Nerve entrapment
• Achilles tendinitis
• Arterial insufficiency
• See also foot pain
• Jogger's foot
• Tarsal tunnel syndrome
• Heel fasciitis
• Peripheral ischemia

See full list of 15 causes of Heel pain

» Review Causes of Heel pain: full list

Causes of Types of Heel pain:

Review the causes of these more specific types of Heel pain:

• Heel burning sensation (12 causes)
• Heel paresthesia/ tingling (11 causes)

More types of Heel pain

Heel pain: Multiple Symptom Checker

Listed below are some combinations of symptoms associated with Heel pain, as listed in our database. Visit the Multiple Symptoms Checker, to add and remove symptoms and research your condition.

Multiple Symptom Checker - Other Symptoms

• Heel pain: Multiple Symptom Checker

Multiple Symptom Checker Combinations

• Heel pain and Foot pain (6 causes)
• Heel pain and Nerve symptoms (4 causes)
• Heel pain and Pain (4 causes)
• Heel pain and Sensations (4 causes)
• Heel pain and Foot symptoms (3 causes)
• Heel pain and Leg pain (2 causes)
• Heel pain and Paresthesias (2 causes)
• Heel pain and Leg symptoms (2 causes)
• Heel pain and Ankle pain (1 cause)
• Heel pain and Calf pain (1 cause)
• Heel pain and Chills (1 cause)
• Heel pain and Circulation symptoms (1 cause)
• Heel pain and Coldness (1 cause)
• Heel pain and Cramping leg pain (1 cause)
• Heel pain and Cramps (1 cause)
• Heel pain and Fever (1 cause)
• Heel pain and Heart rhythm symptoms (1 cause)
• Heel pain and Heart symptoms (1 cause)
• Heel pain and Sweat symptoms (1 cause)
• Heel pain and Weak pulse (1 cause)

See full list of 65 Multiple Symptom Checker combinations related to Heel pain

Causes of General Symptom Types

Research the causes of these more general types of symptom:

• Foot pain (202 causes)
• Pain (3014 causes)
• Sensations (3186 causes)
• Nerve symptoms (3495 causes)
• Foot symptoms (685 causes)
• Common symptoms (4555 causes)
• Limb symptoms (1032 causes)
• Leg symptoms (1076 causes)

Causes of Similar Symptoms to Heel pain

Research the causes of these symptoms that are similar to, or related to, the symptom Heel pain:

• Foot pain (202 causes)
• Sole pain (11 causes)
• Ankle pain (38 causes)
• Heel symptoms
• Heel rash

Diagnostic Guides for Heel pain

Medical Books Excerpts Read excerpts from published book sections related to Heel pain from the following published medical books for more detailed information about Heel pain. Free access (no registration): read all online diagnostic book sections about Heel pain

Copyright notice for book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.

Misdiagnosis and Heel pain

Leg cramps at night a classic sign: The symptom of having leg muscle cramps, particularly at night, is a classic sign of undiagnosed diabetes. However, there are also various other causes. See causes of leg cramps or ...read more »

Vitamin B12 deficiency under-diagnosed: The condition of Vitamin B12 deficiency is a possible misdiagnosis of various conditions, such as multiple sclerosis (see symptoms of multiple sclerosis). See symptoms of Vitamin B12 deficiency or ...read more »

Read more about Misdiagnosis and Heel pain

Diagnostic tests for Heel pain:

Various tests are used in the diagnosis of Heel pain. Some of these are listed below :

• Physical examination
  • Inspect the gait including limping
  • Inspect the heel looking for any skin changes - e.g. ulcer, foreign body, cellulitis, plantar wart.
  • Feel the foot, especially the heel for tenderness
  • Feel for tenderness localized 5cm for the end of the heel suggestive of plantar fasciitis

See full list of 23 diagnostic tests for Heel pain

Diagnosis Checklist: Questions your doctor may ask (and why!)

During a consultation, your doctor will use various techniques in their assessment of Heel pain. Your doctor may ask several questions when assessing your condition. It is important to remember that your consultation is a two-way process and any extra information you can share with your doctor about your symptoms may help them with their diagnosis. Some of the questions your doctor may ask are listed below:

• How long have you had heel pain? - to determine if acute or chronic.
• Is it unilateral or bilateral?
• Where exactly on the heel is the pain?
• How would you explain the pain in the foot? - e.g. burning type pain may suggest nerve entrapment; throbbing pain may suggest inflammation of the joints such as Reiter's disease or ankylosing spondylitis; sharp pain over the Achilles may suggest rupture.
• Are there certain times of the day when the pain is worse? - e.g. pain under the heel worse when first stepping out of bed and standing after sitting suggests plantar fasciitis ; pain worse at night may suggest peripheral vascular disease.

See Diagnosis Checklist for Heel pain (22 listings)

Diagnosis Checklist: Associated symptoms your doctor may ask about (and why!)

Sometimes, other symptoms may be present and may help your doctor analyse your condition. The symptoms your doctor may ask about (in association with Heel pain) may include:

• Pain in other joints? - e.g. such as hands, legs, spine, sacro-iliac joints - may indicate that the foot pain is part of an arthritis condition such as Reiter's syndrome or Ankylosing Spondylitis which are both associated with plantar fasciitis and Achilles tendonitis.
• Recent diarrhea? - may suggest Reiter's syndrome which is both associated with plantar fasciitis and Achilles tendonitis.
• Burning sensation with urination (dysuria) and penile discharge? - may suggest Reiter's syndrome.
• Eye pain? - may suggest Ankylosing spondylitis or Reiter's disease which are both associated with plantar fasciitis and Achilles tendonitis.
• Symptoms of peripheral vascular disease? - e.g. intermittent claudication (pain in calf and sometimes foot with exercise and relieved by rest); numbness of foot at rest or on walking; rest pain at night, interfering with sleep, precipitated by elevation and relieved by dependency of foot. Arterial ulcers due to inadequate arterial blood supply are usually very painful.

See Diagnosis Checklist for Heel pain (22 listings)

Stories from Users for Heel pain

Real-life user stories relating to Heel pain:

• sore heel
• Heel, ankle, leg & hip pain
• heel pain
• Heel Pain
• Heel and Thigh Pain
• hot heeling
• Pain in heels ! ouch... Please help
• burning heels,coughing spasms,lower body pain
• Heel Pain
• heel pain
• sore heel
• burning heels,coughing spasms,lower body pain

Symptom specific forums: The following patient stories in our interactive forums and message boards relate to Heel pain or relevant symptoms:

• Cardiovascular (Heart and Blood Circulation) (171)
  • Chest pain and shortness of breath
  • Hand numbness
  • Purple-blue skin color
  • Need help with diagnoses
  • Anxiety and high BP
  • More user stories
• Musculoskeletal (Muscles, joints and bones) (405)
  • Joint and muscular pain after taking chantix
  • Arm pain after sneezing
  • Fibromyalgia
  • Joint swelling, stiffness, severe foot pain
  • Muscle twitches/spasms
  • More user stories
• Integumentary (Skin) (244)
  • Itchy red bumps all over body? Hives?
  • Sensitive Skin to Touch
  • Painful skin and no answers!!!
  • Pinprick red dots, itchy skin, wrongly diagnosed
  • Skin blisters, joint & muscle pain, Photos..
  • More user stories
• Neurological (Nerves) (357)
  • Could this be MS?
  • Numbness and tingling all over
  • Tingling/numbness in arms/hands/legs/face/head [more symptoms]
  • Eye twitch
  • Essential tremor
  • More user stories
• Endocrine (Growth and Metabolism) (93)
  • Symptoms of Cushing's - Tests all negative
  • Has anyone been diagnosed with Wilson's Temperature Syndrome and are being treated??
  • Pitutary tumor
  • I am at my wits end with these symptoms
  • I think I have Cushings, can you help?
  • More user stories
• Allergic/Immunologic (88)
  • Chronic hives
  • Spontaneous flushing and redness of face and body.
  • Non-stop itching, no rash
  • Swelling & itching
  • Problems with my scalp can anyone help me
  • More user stories

Videos for Heel pain

Patient Surveys for Heel pain

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Organs affected by Heel pain:

The list of organs typically affected by Heel pain may include, but is not limited to:

• Heel

Detailed list of causes of Heel pain

The list below shows some of the causes of Heel pain mentioned in various sources:

• Achilles tendinitis
• Arterial insufficiency
• Arthritis-related enthesitis - heel pain
• Calcaneal apophysitis
• Calcaneal spur

See full list of 15 causes of Heel pain

How Common are these Causes of Heel pain?

This information refers to the general prevalence and incidence of these diseases, not to how likely they are to be the actual cause of Heel pain. Of the 15 causes of Heel pain that we have listed, we have the following prevalence/incidence information:

• 0 causes are "very common" diseases
• 0 causes are "common" diseases
• 0 causes are "uncommon" diseases
• 0 causes are "rare" diseases
• 1 causes are "very rare" diseases
• 14 causes have no prevalence information.

See the analysis of the prevalence of 15 causes of Heel pain

Conditions listing symptoms: Heel pain:

The following list of conditions have 'Heel pain' or similar listed as a symptom in our database. This computer-generated list may be inaccurate or incomplete. Always seek prompt professional medical advice about the cause of any symptom.

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Doctors and specialists: Who should I consult about Heel pain?

Depending on the seriousness of the onset of Heel pain, you may want to consult one of the following medical professionals.
Important:In extreme cases, always seek advice from emergency services :

• General practitioner
• Emergency physician
• Neurologist
• Endocrinologist
• Orthopaedic surgeon

Classifications of Heel pain:

Subtypes of Heel pain:

Heel burning sensation, Heel paresthesia/ tingling

Medical Conditions associated with Heel pain:

Foot pain (58 causes), Pain (2937 causes), Sensations (3159 causes), Nerve symptoms (3452 causes), Foot symptoms (680 causes), Common symptoms (4528 causes), Limb symptoms (1021 causes), Leg symptoms (1067 causes)

Symptoms related to Heel pain:

Foot pain (58 causes), Sole pain, Ankle pain (12 causes), Heel symptoms, Heel rash

Heel pain as a disease:

You may also want to research other Diseases in our Disease Center.

Medical articles on signs and symptoms:

Doctor-patient articles related to symptoms and diagnosis:

• What to tell your doctor about your symptoms
• What questions will the doctor ask about your symptoms (and why)?
• What does your doctor do in a physical examination?
• What questions should you ask the doctor about a symptom or diagnosis?
• What questions to ask the doctor about the treatment
• Steps to take to get the most out of a doctor visit
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These general medical articles may be of interest:

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• Symptoms of the Silent Killer Diseases
• Online Diagnosis
• Self Diagnosis Pitfalls
• Pitfalls of Online Diagnosis

See full list of premium articles on symptoms and diagnosis

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