Heel Pain

Patient Education Videos

Heel pain is most often the result of overuse. However, it may be caused by an injury.

Your heel may become tender or swollen from:

Shoes with poor support or shock absorption
Running on hard surfaces, like concrete
Running too often
Tightness in your calf muscle or the Achilles tendon
Sudden inward or outward turning of your heel
Landing hard or awkwardly on the heel

Conditions that may cause heel pain include:

Swelling and pain in the Achilles tendon
Swelling of the fluid-filled sac (bursa) at the back of the heel bone under the Achilles tendon (bursitis)
Bone spurs in the heel
Swelling of the thick band of tissue on the bottom of your foot (plantar fasciitis)
Fracture of the heel bone that is related to landing very hard on your heel from a fall (calcaneus fracture)