The medial and inferior calcaneal nerves: an anatomic study

Abstract

The existence of chronic heel pain induced by the compression of nerves prompted us to conduct an anatomic study of the innervation of the heel. Fifteen cadaver feet were dissected to investigate the origin, course and branches of the medial calcaneal nerve (MCN) and the inferior calcaneal nerve (ICN). Despite a variable origin (tibial n. (TN) or lateral plantar n. (LPN)), the medial calcaneal nerve branches which lay superficial to the abductor hallucis muscle (AH) were quite constant. The medial calcaneal nerve gave branches to the abductor hallucis muscle and innervated the posterior part of the medial face of the heel. It terminated in the superficial heel pad at the inferior part of the heel. In our study, the inferior calcaneal nerve always originated from the lateral plantar nerve. Its relationship to the deep fascia of the abductor hallucis muscle and anterior tubercle of calcaneus may explain the entrapment syndrome of the inferior calcaneal nerve.