Important distinction should be made between both acute and chronic heel pain.  Most physicians consider acute heel pain something that is 4-6 weeks old in nature and still has the ability to resolve on its own and often doesn’t take a lot of intervention.  These are the typical patients I can ice and stretch and find a fair amount of relief.  However there is a different category of patients ones where the heel pain becomes chronic and these are much harder to treat.

Chronic heel pain is usually described as anything over 6 weeks in nature and oftentimes fairly debilitating.  I see quite a few patients that often times have heel pain that has been around for more than a year and regardless of stretching and icing.  Chronic heel pain is a different animal and normally requires some sort of biological intervention.  I think it is important to address the nature of the chronic heel pain and an MRI to evaluate whether or not a tear is present can be highly beneficial.

If you are suffering from heel pain and this has been going on for months to years I can help.  First it is important to identify the underlying causes and at this point implementing a treatment plan that can be curative. Give us a call at 425-391-8666 or make an appointment online today. 

Sincerely,

Dr. Brandon Nelson

Board-Certified Foot and Ankle Physician