Bone Spurs
Medical Author: William C. Shiel Jr., MD, FACP, FACR
Medical Editor: Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD
What is a bone spur?
A bone spur is a tiny pointed outgrowth of bone.
What causes bone spurs?
Bone spurs are usually caused by local inflammation, such as from
degenerative arthritis or tendinitis. This inflammation stimulates the cells
that form bone to deposit bone in this area, eventually leading to a bony
prominence or spur. For example, inflammation of the ligament that surrounds a
degenerating disc between the vertebrae (the bony building blocks of the spine)
is a very common cause of bone spurs of the spine. Inflammation of the Achilles
tendon can lead to the formation of a bone spur at the back of the heel bone (calcaneus
bone). This bone spur is sometimes referred to as a heel spur.
Where do bone spurs occur?
Bone spurs develop in areas of inflammation or injury in nearby cartilage or
tendons. Common locations for bone spurs are in the back, or sole, of the heel
bone of the foot, around joints that have degenerated cartilage, and in the
spine adjacent to degenerated discs.
What are symptoms of bone spurs?
Bone spurs may or may not cause symptoms. When they do cause symptoms, the
symptoms depend on their location. Bone spurs can be associated with pain,
numbness, and tenderness if they are irritating adjacent tissues, such as skin,
fat pads, nerves or tendons.
Heel spurs cause local foot pain, tenderness, and sometimes swelling. This
can lead to difficulty walking due to pain at the bottom of the foot with
weight-bearing. Sometimes there is accompanying inflammation of the entire
bottom of the foot (plantar fasciitis) when the heel spur occurs in the bottom
of the heel bone. Occasionally, bone spurs in this location are a result of
inflammatory arthritis, such as from reactive arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis,
or diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH or Forrestier's disease).
Spurs in the spine can pinch adjacent nerves to cause numbness, tingling, and
pain as well as weakness in the area of the body supplied by the affected nerve.
Some bone spurs do not cause symptoms and are incidentally detected by X-ray
tests that are performed for other reasons. These spurs may have formed because
of past injury to nearby tissues, such as tendons, that caused local
inflammation of the bone, leading to the development of the bone spur.
How are bone spurs diagnosed?
Bone spurs are detected by radiologic testing, such as with plain X-rays,
ultrasound imaging, MRI scan, CT scan, and myelograms.
Next: How are bone spurs treated? »
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