Bump at Back of Heel: Painful Achilles Insertion Point
 I have a bump on the outside back of my heel. It's been there my whole life, but over the last year or two occasionally it would get inflamed for a day or two and a course of aspirin or Naproxen and ice would bring it down. Until a few months ago. I got it again and it took 2 weeks to get rid of it. I called "my" podiatrist -actually his secretary I guess- and when I asked about being seen and told the symptoms he just told her to tell me "Orthopedic surgeon". But it went away for a couple of weeks and I discontinued the Naproxen. Then a few weeks later I got it again and this time it took perhaps 3 weeks to go away 99%, including a couple of days of bed rest. Then I took a 20 minute walk on Friday (2 days ago) and I guess that was a big mistake, as the pain and inflammation started again Friday night. This was perhaps only a week after it left and I was thinking "OK, I guess it's time to go see someone." Early this afternoon (Sunday) I noticed that the other side of the heel was also just a tad sore and a little while later when I got up to hobble over to get some water, the left side of my heel was hurting more than the right, although I don't see any inflammation or another bump. Oh noooooo.... So here is what the right side looks like with my left side on a cooling pack:  I've seen this article.. http://www.gellerpodiatry.com/achilles- ... ilds-play/ Soooo does anyone have experience to share with this Achilles Insertion Point condition? Or maybe it's a "Pump Bump" even though my shoes don't hurt at all, or "Haglund's Deformity"? Having the pain on both sides is kind of odd, as well. He recommends stretching but, while the pain/inflammation is still happening? I can certainly bear the pain at this point if it will help to heal things. I don't know who to see or how to find an orthopedic surgeon, or even if that's the right doctor to find. I really don't want to go to the Emergency Department over this, or "waste" a trip to my primary care physician, and if I call for a name as a referral, she's sure to want to see it. My insurance does not require a formal referral from my PCP to see specialists, believe it or not. Anyone? |
|
|
Wow. That looks quite painful Ron!  Sorry you are having problems and I hope you find relief soon.If I were you, I would see a podiatrist. You may not need an orthopedic surgeon, and I don't think a pcp would be able to diagnose much. Good luck and keep us posted. |
| Ron, that looks very painful. I'm really surprised that your podiatrist wouldn't see you. I would find a new one. (Too bad you don't live here in Chicago as my podiatrist is fantastic.) It certainly looks like an Achilles Tendon injury/inflammation. A podiatrist who actually examined the area and took an x-ray/MRI would be able to tell you if conservative options, like icing it, taking anti-inflammatories, physical therapy, and keeping it elevated would help. I had a Brevis Tendon injury, which, with a special wrap, ice, and stretching, improved and eventually went away. However, I did not have the swelling you have, which could indicate a tear in the tendon. (My tendon was attenuated, not torn.) My podiatrist did the exam and relevant tests (x-ray, MRI) to see what was causing my pain. Since he also does foot surgery as well, if the conservative route hadn't worked, we would have explored that option. I would be afraid that if you skip over a podiatrist and go right to an ortho surgeon, you might end up having surgery when you don't need it. One thing to note. My cousin has a Master's in Sports Medicine, as well as being certified in Physical Therapy. When I had my injury, she told me that whatever happens, do not allow a doctor to do any cortisone shots in the foot, especially for a tendon injury. Steroids deteriorate the tendon further, and cause more damage. I hope that it gets better quickly. Laurie and Oscar |
| Laurie and Jenn, THANK YOU BOTH for responding!! I think it's more of a case of the way I approached it rather than him not seeing me. I asked about a painful Achilles Tendon Insertion Point and that was his response (through his secretary), I never really asked for an appointment and as soon as I hung up and thought about it, I realized I had made an error in judgement in my approach to the problem. But I didn't call back.  I have read your responses plus a response in our chatroom triage system (thanks Dawn!) and you all have convinced me that the right approach is to be seen by a podiatrist. I asked for an appointment and have been scheduled for 2:15 today. That's only 2 hours from now, I'd better get hopping! Lol sorry. The nice thing about this doctor (and the entire medical group of maybe 30 MDs is they're right in my town, just 2.6 miles (according to google). That's almost close enough to walk, but not today I suppose.  |
Good luck!  |
| Hope your appointment went well! |
| Well, how did it go? |
Waiting to hear  |
Simon's Mom wrote: Waiting to hear and STILL waiting!!! |
| While I was in the waiting room, I overheard someone asking the doctor if he could help them place an Old English Sheepdog for adoption! OK, not really, they asked him if he knew where to get his tubes tired. OK, OK. Seriously. The podiatrist and I chatted, he taped up my foot, wants me to continue to take Naproxen 500mg twice a day (been doing that already) and see him in a week. If it isn't any better, take pictures and go from there. He plans on orthotics to prevent this from happening in the future. I already have orthotics, but I need a new pair anyway... they've gotta be at least 12 years old.. and Jake had chewed on them at one time. LOL Taped up heel.  The tape job is VERY similar to the one for Plantar Fasciitis that this doctor did for me (and taught me how to replace it until my orthotics were ready) lo those 12 years ago, completely ending my pain just days. Interestingly, he thinks that perhaps this a related to my gout issues rather than a tendon issue. Now the bad news. I don't think he's up to date on gout. When we were talking, he asked if I had been tested for gout. I told him that the rheumatologist had aspirated my ankle joint (stuck a needle into the joint to pull out some fluid for microscopic examination). He said he meant blood work. I told him my uric acid levels had been checked before and they were high, and then I said but they didn't get any fluid from my ankle. He scoffed at the aspiration and said "Oh that's junk". Hmmmmm. That's very interesting. My understanding has been that uric acid levels alone do not provide specificity for gout -- in other words people with high uric acid levels do not always get gout, something like half do not. That the definitive test for gout was the presence of uric acid crystals in the joint fluid. So this has me a bit puzzled. Research does show that uric acid levels in people with gout should be controlled to prevent tissue damage in the joints both during flares and during non-flare times, but I worry that this doctor may have gotten a message from a pharmaceutical rep (selling uric acid lowering agents, no doubt) a wee bit garbled. Oh well. As long as he stops my heel from hurting, I'll be a happier camper. |
| Oh, and there are no openings at all for new patients in the group practice. I had been thinking it's time I started going to a General Practitioner or Internist or Family Medicine physician as my PCP and keep my current PCP as my endocrinologist, her specialty. I think she's pretty good as an endo, but I think it would be nice if she actually would remember me from visit to visit and see me as a whole person rather than just a few malfunctioning glands. I think I need that continuity of care from my PCP and I'm hoping someone else can provide that. Joan went to see our vet a little while ago (I can't recall why at the moment) and she told me last night that he is now performing surgery laparascopically and he said that he had thought of our Jake, because he performed laparascopic surgery on a crypt orchid and only had a couple of tiny incisions. He remembered the illness our first dog had. That illness was back in 1999 or 2000. He runs an extremely busy veterinary practice sees patients all day, performs surgeries, built the hospital, owns and runs the place, and he remembered our dog from back then and remembered we were Jake's parents. That's the kind of doctor I want. If only I could grow a tail. |
| That looks painfun! Hope you get a resolution soon! How long are orthotics supposed to last? |
| Thanks, me too! I don't know how long they're supposed to last, mine lasted for several years until Jake gnawed on them... then lasted a bunch more! LOL They haven't deformed that I know of, although their covers are well worn. Off. |
| i hope your feet start feeling better soon. |
| I hope this helps! I don't wear orthotics, but I have clients who do...I'd say 12 years has passed their useful period!! My current client has them, and his needed a tweak last summer - just a barely noticable ripple in it was causing abnormal red spots and callous buildup. Re: doctor for PCP - I switched a long time ago to FP - and couldn't be happier. It was when my current other doctors were retiring and others were ones I really didn't care for. And yes - being a number was part of it too - never having a good relationship with a doctor who even remembered who you were!! (And double bad, because I actually saw them often at the hospital at work and still no recognition!  )I switched approx 20 yrs ago and never looked back! I remember it was when son Travis got his kindergarten physical and I got a Pap test....oh the joys of FP!  Now Travis is 24...so it's been a while. He also continued to be my daughters' doctors and delivered 2 of the 3 grandkids (not Norah - as she was delivered at Children's in the TC due to medical issues and a snowstorms 2 yrs ago), and continues to know us all, all the time. In fact when daughter LeAnne scheduled an appt after she was married, he saw her when he came in the room, and said "oh it's YOU!" and congratulated her on her marriage....nice!  |
| I should post a picture of my old, old orthotics.... I don't know -- Pictures of poops, ticks my belly -- that's one thing. But of old worn out orthotics? *shudder* Foot is feeling better, yay! I don't know if it is because of the usual course of the Naproxen doing the trick or if it's the taping job -- or both. Probably a combination of the two. I see him again next Monday to help put his daughter through college and see what else my poor feet need. |
Ron wrote: I should post a picture of my old, old orthotics.... I don't know -- Pictures of poops, ticks my belly -- that's one thing. But of old worn out orthotics? *shudder* Foot is feeling better, yay! I don't know if it is because of the usual course of the Naproxen doing the trick or if it's the taping job -- or both. Probably a combination of the two. I see him again next Monday to help put his daughter through college and see what else my poor feet need.  Very good news...hope it continues to improve! |
Ron wrote: I see him again next Monday to help put his daughter through college and see what else my poor feet need. Growing up I had braces for about 14 months. My dad would always write in the memo section of the check "boat payment." Our long time dentist/orthodontist was an avid sailor on Lake Michigan  |
| Exactly. |
Didn't find exactly what you're looking for? Search again here:
Custom Search
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|