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The response to the question below was authored by Marc Mitnick DPM

The heel of my foot is in a lot of pain, especially when active

by Jamie
(England)

A few days a go I jumped off a wall about 2 meters high, maybe a bit more but I didn't brace myself for the impact. I landed hard on my right foot which gave way and I fell over. I managed to get back up and limp over to somewhere to sit down where I remained for about 30-45 minutes when I managed to walk around a bit without too much pain. I then went home and my foot wasn't too painful for the rest of the evening. However the next day I went about my normal activities where I experienced periods of intense pain in my foot. I was just wondering if I could have broken or fractured a bone in my foot

RESPONSE

Hi Jamie,

Any time there is trauma to the foot there is always the chance of a broken bone. I have no way of knowing by your narrative whether or not you fractured your heel.
The only way you are going to know for sure is to go have an x-ray and have the foot examined by a doctor.
Keep in mind, however, that sometimes very small fractures in a bone may not show up initially on x-ray. The heel bone is notorious for "hiding" small fractures.
The prudent move, even if there is no fracture on x-ray, but pain still present, would be to put you in a cast, possibly non-weightbearing. This would protect the heel and even if there is an undiagnosed fracture, would allow it to start healing.
I would then give it two weeks and be re-evaluated. If there were still significant pain, I would think the doctor at the very least would take another x-ray, but he or she might consider an MRI or bone scan which are better means to find small fractures.
If it turns out that there is no fracture at all then probably all you did to your foot was suffer a contusion and again being in a cast and possibly non-weightbearing would be a great way to get the foot better as quickly as possible.
Lastly, depending on the type of shoe you were wearing, the type of impact your foot had when it hit the ground and your overall body weight, there is always the possibility that you tore something like a tendon or perhaps the plantar fascial ligament which is the long ligament running from the bottom of the heel to the ball of the foot.
So as you can see there are a few different possibilities that may be causing your pain and the only way to know for sure what it is, is for you to see a doctor.

Marc Mitnick DPM
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ADDITIONAL REFERENCES

Mayo Clinic

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Arthritis Foundation

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Drugs.com

American Academy of Pediatrics

Penn State Medical Center

National Institutes of Health

Columbia University Department of Rehabilitation

ScienceDirect

Stanford Health Care

Illinois Bone and Joint Institute

Mount Sinai Hospital

Institute for Chronic Pain

University of Florida Health

American Family Physician

Cedars-Sinai

University of Maryland Medical Center

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(location unknown)

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(location unknown)

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Regards,

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Placentia, California

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Unknown location

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Unknown location

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New Zealand

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Arizona

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Poland

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location unknown

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location unknown

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anonymous

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Seattle, WA

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location unknown

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New Jersey

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location unknown

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Evansville, IA

Dear Marc

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San Diego, CA

Dr. Mitnick, Just want to say thank you so very much for your quick response and very informative reply! After reading what you had to say, I called the doctor's office and was able to get in and see him the same day as my injury. Toe was x-rayed and luckily, it is not broken or fractured. Very badly bruised and will probably lose the toe nail. And although my toe and toe nail are still very black and blue and very sore, they ARE both starting to feel a little better. So again, thank you! I am so very happy that I came across your website. The service you provide is outstanding and immeasurable!

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Albany, NY

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location unknown

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Whichita, KS

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Boston, MA

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Colorado

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Colorado

Wonderful advice

by: Anonymous

This is the best site for foot problem info.

Thank you for this information. This description fits my pain and inflammation behind my 2nd toe perfectly.

by: Max

location unknown

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Canada

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location unknown

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Wisconsin

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location unknown

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Renae

North Carolina

Many Thanks Dr Marc!
Thank you for your response. It sounds like a good plan to me. He did not cut the wart out first ...

KG

location unknown

Thanks again doc for having this website and we STILL need qualified Podiatrists in beautiful sunny Tampa Bay (Bradenton) Florida.

Bessie Mae

Florida

Dear Dr. Mitnick, Thank you so very much for taking your time to answer my question. You have greatly relieved my anxiety related to the continual tingly I feel in my feet. I will share your response with my podiatrist next week. God bless you for having this question and answer page on your website! Most gratefully,

Lynne T.

location unknown

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New Jersey

Thank you. you were more detailed than what others have told me they finally called from the last xrays and my son is now in a cast for 2 weeks he did have a fracture that was not noticeable.

a mom

location unknown

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Lenoir, NC

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Bellevue, WA

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Jodi

location unknown

The heel of my foot is in a lot of pain, especially when active

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