The Musculoskeletal System
Lesson 2: Diseases and Disorders of the Feet
Section I: Skeletal and Muscular Structure of the Feet
2-3
2-3. HEEL WEAR AND TEAR
a. Daily Activities and the Heel. Smaller than a golf ball, the heel (calcaneus bone) is the largest bone in the foot and withstands much wear and tear from our daily activities. Soft protective tissue about 3/8ths of an inch thick lies between the bone and the sale of the foot. This tissue wears down easily. Running places a great deal of strain on the heel. A person running places three times his weight on his heel. This pounding of the heel on a hard surface such as the pavement or firm ground can be compared to the pounding of a sledgehammer against an unyielding surface.
b. Heel Pain. It is no wonder, then, that there are foot disorders of the heel. The first indication of a foot disorder of the heel may be pain. An individual may feel pain on the plantar surface of the heel (the sole of the heel). Such pain is usually caused by strain at the periosteal attachment of the plantar fascia and the flexor digitalis brevis. (See figures 2-4, 2-5, and 2-6.)
c. Types of Heel Disorder. There are several types of foot disorders of the heel. Included are the calcaneal spur syndrome (fig 2-8), calcaneal fat pad displacement, Sever's disease, Haglund's deformity, retrocalcaneal space pain, and metatarsalgia pain.
