Sever's disease is a swelling and irritation of the growth plate in the heel. The growth plate is a layer of cartilage near the end of a bone where most of the bone's growth happens. It is weaker and more at risk for injury than the rest of the bone.
Luckily, Sever's disease usually goes away within a few months and doesn't cause lasting problems.
Sever's disease usually causes pain or tenderness in one or both heels. It also can lead to:
Symptoms are usually worse during or after activity and get better with rest.
Sever's disease happens during the growth spurt of puberty. Your bones, muscles, and tendons grow at different rates then. The muscles and tendons can get tight, pulling on the growth plate in the heel. Activities and sports pull on the tight muscles and tendons, injuring the growth plate. This is what leads the pain of Sever's disease.
Less often, Sever's disease can happen from standing too long, which puts constant pressure on the heel.
Sever's disease usually happens in kids who are:
To check for Sever's disease, doctors:
A kid with Sever's disease needs to cut down on or stop doing all activities that cause pain. Walking and non-weight bearing exercises (like swimming) are usually OK.
The doctor also might recommend:
Sometimes a short leg cast is put on for about a week if:
Kids can go back to sports when the activity does not cause any pain.
With rest, Sever's disease usually gets better within 2 weeks to 2 months. Most kids can do all of the sports and activities that they did before.
To help prevent Sever's disease from coming:
Usually by age 15, the growth plate is finished growing. After that, you won't get Sever's disease again.
Reviewed by: Alvin Wei-i Su, MD
Date Reviewed: 14-01-2019