Ankle and Foot

Achilles Tendinitis

Signs and Symptoms
Diagnosis
Treatment

Signs and Symptoms

The Achilles tendon, which pulls up the back of the heel, is the largest tendon in the body and can withstand forces of 1,000 pounds or more. It also is the most frequently ruptured tendon. Both professional and weekend athletes suffer from Achilles tendinitis, a common overuse injury and inflammation of the tendon.

Signs and symptoms of tendinitis include:

• Mild pain after exercise or running that gradually worsens
• A noticeable sense of sluggishness in your leg
• Episodes of diffuse or localized pain, sometimes severe, along the tendon during or a few hours after running
• Morning tenderness about an inch and a half above the point where the Achilles tendon is attached to the heel bone
• Stiffness that generally diminishes as the tendon warms up with use
• Some swelling

Reviewed by health care specialists at UCSF Medical Center.
Last updated May 8, 2007