Heel Spur and Acupuncture: Does it Work?

Abstract

Heel spur is also known as a result of plantar calcaneal bone spur which is a common complaint associated with pain at heel. Heel spur is more common in females. Anti-inflammatory drugs, local steroid injections, physical therapy, low-dose radiotherapy and shock wave therapy are the commonly used treatment choices. There is no evidence that acupuncture is an effective treatment method for heel spur in the literature. However, we know that acupuncture can be used for many orthopaedic diseases like frozen shoulder, tennis elbow, sciatic pain, joint sprains, several forms of bursitis and arthritis. In this case, we aimed to demonstrate whether acupuncture is effective in a patient with heel spur. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case in which only acupuncture is used alone for the treatment of heel spur up to date in the literature.