Irradiation for heel spur | Treatment of a calcaneal spur

Irradiation for heel spur

Treatment with X-rays should only be carried out for heel spurs if all other measures have already been tried without improvement and heel spur surgery should still be avoided. Within a few weeks, the foot is irradiated in an X-ray tube for a few minutes at a time. X-rays damage cells and the higher the radiation dose, the greater the damage the radiation can cause to body tissue.

The radiation dose is lower than in cancer therapy, for example, but should not be underestimated. According to the current state of knowledge, the radiation dose is associated with very few acute side effects or late effects. Irradiation improves the blood circulation and metabolism of the cells in the inflamed tissue around the heel spur.

The main purpose of radiation is to relieve the pain of the heel spur, which is successful in most cases. Inflammatory soft tissue or connective tissue diseases such as the heel spur, but also arthrosis, tennis elbow or benign vascular tumors can be treated with good treatment success by radiation.In about 70 to 100 percent of cases, the pain associated with the heel spur can be successfully relieved by radiation. In principle, radiation of a heel spur should only be considered if conventional therapy and the administration of painkillers have not been successful.

However, the earlier the heel spur is irradiated, the greater the success of treatment by radiation. The treatment itself only takes a few minutes and is painless. In most cases, the heel spur is treated twice a week with the low-dose radioactive radiation over a period of five weeks. It should be noted that radiation cannot eliminate the cause of the discomfort, i.e. it does not destroy the heel spur, but only treats the inflammation in the surrounding tissue.

Shock wave therapy against heel spur

The so-called shock wave therapy belongs to the alternative treatment methods for heel spurs. Here, bundled sound waves are to act on the inflamed tissue around the heel spur. The heel spur is not disintegrated by the shock waves.

The theory behind this is that the heel spur itself is not the cause, but only an expression of the complaints and that treatment with shock waves can inhibit the development and propagation of pain. Shock wave therapy is intended to stimulate metabolic processes and start the healing process. At present, shock wave therapy for heel spurs is still a very controversial topic.

Some successes in patients whose pain has been completely eliminated are in contrast to the relatively painful treatment which is spread over several sessions. Approximately 2000 shock waves are emitted per session and about three to five treatments at intervals of one to two weeks are necessary. The principle is based on ultrasonic waves and is also used in the treatment of kidney stones.

Side effects of shock wave therapy are, for example, irritation of the tissue, which can be noticeable by small reddening, bruising or nerve irritation with numbness or tingling. Usually these complaints disappear shortly after the treatment. Physiotherapy and stretching exercises can relieve the symptoms of heel spurs.

The most important thing is to strengthen and stretch the arch of the foot. The foot and calf musculature controls the heel spur for as long as possible against the incorrect loads. Relaxation exercises should be performed to counteract this overloading.

Rolling the sole of the foot slowly over a tennis ball or hedgehog ball can give the foot back its muscular stability and relieve the ligaments. Another typical exercise to strengthen the foot muscles is performed while sitting while a towel is placed in front of the foot. This towel should now be grabbed several times with the toes, lifted up and then dropped again.

The longitudinal arch of the foot can also be trained. The sole of the foot should be placed firmly in a seated position and the toes and heel should remain firmly on the ground during the exercise. Now the outer edge of the foot is put under a little more pressure and the longitudinal arch of the foot is slowly pulled upwards.

The calf muscles are usually shortened by a heel spur, which can be felt as painful. The shortened ligaments can be loosened with physiotherapeutic massages. In addition, special exercises can be performed to stretch the calf muscles.

For example, a towel or something similar can be wrapped around the foot while sitting. Then the ends of the towel are held with both hands and pulled towards the body until a stretch is felt in the calf. This position should be held for about half a minute and repeated after a break. If the exercise is performed with the knee bent, the Achilles tendon is also stretched.