There are many conditions that can affect the heels in adults, but if a child presents with heel pain, easily the most common cause is Severs Disease. Severs disease is an overuse type injury to the growth late at the back of the heel bone in the foot. This growth plate is the part of the heel that contacts the ground first, so is subjected to a lot of load. The Achilles tendon also attaches to this growth plate, also putting a lot of load on it. The most common cause of severs disease is overuse, such as playing a lot of sport on hard surfaces. Tight calf muscles and flat or pronated feet also seem to play a role in severs disease. The most common symptoms of severs disease is pain on squeezing the sides of the back of the heel and pain at the back of the heel following exercise. Severs disease treatment usually starts with some form of activity modification and the use of a cushioned heel raise to relieve the load on the damaged heel bone. Later a walking brace may be needed for the more severe cases of severs disease. Only in extremely rare cases is a cast warranted for severs disease.
Link Elephant has a listing of Severs Disease resources
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