title: Imaging study of the painful heel syndrome.
abstract: A total of 45 patients with the painful heel syndrome without evidence of an associated inflammatory arthritis, seven of whom had pain in both heels, were studied using technetium-99 isotope bone scans and lateral and 45 degrees medial oblique radiographs of both feet. Of the 52 painful heels 31 (59.6%) showed increased uptake of tracer at the calcaneum. Patients with scans showing increased uptake tended to have more severe heel pain and responded more frequently to a local hydrocortisone injection. On plain x-ray, 39 of 52 painful heels (75%) and 24 of the 38 opposite nonpainful heels (63%) showed plantar spurs, compared with five of 63 (7.9%) heels in 59 age- and sex-matched controls. No evidence of stress fractures was seen.
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001835:Body Weight; D004164:Diphosphonates / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D006365:Heel / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010146:Pain / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000209:etiology; D011877:Radionuclide Imaging; D013577:Syndrome; D013667:Technetium / Q000378:metabolism; D017556:Technetium Compounds
chemical_list: D004164:Diphosphonates; D017556:Technetium Compounds; D013667:Technetium; C029045:technetium Tc 99m diphosphonate; D006854:Hydrocortisone