Plantar calcaneal spur

Last revised by Ashesh Ishwarlal Ranchod on 16 Jun 2023

Plantar calcaneal spurs, or sometimes simply referred to as calcaneal spurs, are a commonly seen finding in radiology practice.

Plantar calcaneal spurs tend to usually occur in older men and women and may be related to obesity, osteoarthritis and current or previous heel pain. 

Plantar calcaneal spurs are thought to be a result of enthesophytic changes involving the origin of the plantar aponeurosis 5. Their exact pathophysiology is not well understood but many theories have been proposed 2-4.

Very rarely, plantar calcaneal spurs can fracture 10.

Classically seen on plain radiographs, CT and MRI as a bony spur on the sagittal image projecting inferomedially from the calcaneus.

Osseous spurring of the plantar aspect of the calcaneus was first documented in 1900 by the German physician P Plettner, who coined the term Kalkaneussporn (calcaneal spur) 7.

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