How to treat bone spur that is causing discomfort?

If your bone spur can be felt below your right ankle, it would actually have to be pretty big. Most bone spurs cannot be felt. It may also not be a bone spur but a soft tissue growth that has hardened and become tense/ swollen, and that's why it feels "hard", like a bone.

If the symptoms bother you, and affects your foot & ankle and activities, you should see an orthopaedic surgeon. A thorough examination and radiological investigations would be needed to identify what this is. Sometimes medication and physical therapy may help. Sometimes surgery may also be indicated to remove the bone spur/ lump.

Kind regards

Dr Sean Ng

You should see a Sport Medicine/Orthopaedic/GP doctor, who can perform an X-ray an examination to determine the cause of the discomfort.

Your doctor will also test your joint manually to see how much motion loss and discomfort you have.

Bone spurs often form after an injury to your joint or tendon. It can also occur due to overuse – for example, if you run or dance a lot over a long period of time.

When your body thinks your bone is damaged, it tries to fix it by adding bone to the injured area. This creates bone spurs. Treatments for bone spurs include the following:

Physical therapy: Physical therapy can help relieve symptoms of bone spurs. Exercise helps improve motion and strengthen muscles around the affected joints. Physical therapy can also include ice packs, stretching, massage, and ultrasound treatments.

Pain medications: If bone spurs cause pain and inflammation, your doctor may recommend over-the-counter pain. Another pain relief medication may include a cortisone injection into the damaged joint.

Surgery: If bone spurs press on nerves and cause serious pain, or if they limit motion, you may need surgery to remove them.