achilles pain

i snowboard everyday in the winter here in tahoe........the season started around the end of november so for the first month i was fine.....then a week and a half ago i noticed a little pain in my achilles/heel area.......nothing much just a little soreness that went away when i would snowboard.....about 4 or 5 days later the pain really flared up and i had to stop snowboarding...i then went to the internet and looked for what the problem was.....my best guess is achilles bursitis. i have since(3 days) been icing my heel about 3 time a day, taking 2-3 advil a day, and staying off of my feet with the exception of a little walking at work........how long should this swelling and discomfort last for......is it possible that my boot is partially to blame???(i wouldn't think so i have used these boots no less than 50 times with no discomfort).....is there some way to pad the boot to shorten layoff time......i really love snowboarding.....thanks for any help

[JainMD]

Hi,
I understand that you want to do snowboarding, but if you don’t take care now, the injury might flare up.
Rest is required at least for 1-2 weeks with proper cryotherapy, compression bandage to take care of swelling and passive exercise around ankle joint.
Your symptoms suggest that you might have Achilles Tendinitis.
It is a common overuse injury.
You should be taking general prevention like avoid excessive running uphill and avoid training errors, such as overly rapid increase in running mileage.
I think consultation with an Orthopaedician is must and get imaging study done.
Standing foot radiographs in AP, lateral, oblique views can be taken.
Keep me informed what doctor has to say about this.
Bye.

[jb71]

My tendons  up the back of my heels  are  very red  and  the whole bottom of my feet  are  so red and scaley. My tendon area hurts so bad I can't hardly walk . does anyone have an answer?