Volume 95 No. 4 April 2012 introduCtion Heel pain is a common complaint encountered by primary care physicians. Misdiagnosis is not uncommon because of the intricate anatomy of the heel, where many structures lie in close proximity to one another. While there are traumatic (high-energy), infectious, oncologic, vascular and systemic causes of heel pain, this article will focus on the most common...

OBJECTIVE To examine the effects of oral sucrose on procedural pain, and on biochemical markers of adenosine triphosphate utilization and oxidative stress in preterm neonates with mild to moderate respiratory distress. STUDY DESIGN Preterm neonates with a clinically required heel lance that met study criteria (n = 49) were randomized into three groups: (1) control (n = 24), (2) heel lance tre...

A 41 year old man complains of longstanding pain at the back of his left heel and stiffness when he gets up. The pain is worse when he plays tennis. He asks for advice on what it is and what can be done. Pain at the back of the heel arises from a limited number of anatomical structures: the Achilles tendon, the calcaneal bursa, or the surrounding soft tissues (fig 1⇓). This limits the likely di...

BACKGROUND Heel stick is the most common painful procedure for preterm infants in neonatal intensive care units. Resultant pain causes adverse physiological effects in major organ systems. Kangaroo Care (KC), involving mother-infant skin-to-skin contact is a promising analgesic for infant pain; however, the effect of KC on the autonomic nervous system's response to pain is unknown. AIM To det...

abstract background: the most important part in experiencing and recognizing the threshold of pain is the perception of pain. reflexology is a kind of complementary therapy which is rooted in the beliefs of the community. this study was aimed to determine the effect of reflexology on pain perception aspects in patients with chronic low back pain. materials and methods: this single-blind clinica...

OBJECTIVES To evaluate the therapeutic effect from ultrasound in the treatment of plantar heel pain by physiotherapists and podiatrists, and to quantify the placebo effect of this electrophysical agent. METHODS Patients experiencing episodes of plantar heel pain were allocated randomly, at each episode, to receive either true ultrasound (machine calibrated to deliver a dose of ultrasound at 0...

BACKGROUND Calcaneal apophysitis, also commonly known as sever's disease, is a condition seen in children usually aged between 8-15 years. Conservative therapies, such as taping, heel lifts and orthotic intervention are accepted management practices for calcaneal apophysitis, though there is very little high quality research examining the efficacy of such treatment modalities. Previous narrativ...

OBJECTIVES Infants admitted to a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) are routinely subject to a range of painful procedures. However, pain assessments in NICUs are under-utilized due to a lack of a gold standard pain measure. In this study we assessed the psychometric properties and clinical utility of the COVERS and Pain Assessment Tool (PAT), in a neonatal unit. METHODS We had 72 nurses use...