Joe DiMaggio Heel Pain Center

You don't have to live with pain. We're here to help.

Heel pain and chronic heel pain send millions of Americans to the doctor every year. Many are diagnosed with plantar fasciitis, a common cause -- but if you are misdiagnosed, those same treatments can make the problem much worse by not addressing the underlying condition. The wrong treatment can cause more pain, affect your ability to walk and run, and negatively impact your quality of life.

The right diagnosis for your heel pain

The Joe DiMaggio Heel Pain Center provides nonsurgical care and diagnosis of heel pain conditions and injuries. Our experts have backgrounds in a range of specialties including musculoskeletal podiatry, sports medicine and pain management. Their experience and collaboration, combined with our state-of-the-art imaging and radiology techniques, offers unparalleled expertise and care for patients. If you have chronic pain, sudden acute pain, or would like a second opinion, our team can help diagnose the cause of your heel pain and provide treatment.

Some other causes of heel pain include:

• plantar fascia tears
• Achilles tendon injury
• heel fibromas
• heel pad injury
• ligament tears
• cancer that has metastasized to the heel bone

Not treating or receiving the wrong treatment could trigger and make worse serious health issues, including cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes, obesity, osteoporosis, and depression.

Make an appointment

To make an appointment, call us at 212.606.1858.

Our Team

About the Joe DiMaggio Heel Pain Center

The Joe DiMaggio Heel Pain Center was named in honor of Dr. Positano's former patient, New York Yankees legend and American Icon Joe DiMaggio. In 1990, Joe DiMaggio was still suffering from heel pain -- the result of a sports injury and unsuccessful surgery that prematurely ended his celebrated baseball career back in the late 1940's and one that was chronicled by Ernest Hemingway in his novella, "The Old Man and the Sea." A friend suggested that he see Dr. Positano, a pioneer in the non-surgical treatment of heel injuries and pain. Following a non-surgical treatment regimen, DiMaggio was pain free for the first time in decades. As his treatment progressed, his friendship with Dr. Positano grew. DiMaggio has been quoted as saying to Yankee legendary owner George Steinbrenner that if DiMaggio had seen Dr. Positano 50 years earlier, DiMaggio would have added years to his baseball career.

DiMaggio was so impressed with Dr. Positano's non-surgical approach and the reputation of the Sports Medicine Division at HSS that he urged Dr. Positano to devote his academic and clinical career to developing non-surgical foot and ankle care treatment programs. DiMaggio wanted to spare others from the suffering he incurred from the aggressive surgical treatment for his heel injury. DiMaggio’s encouragement was the impetus for the founding of the Joe DiMaggio Heel Pain Center, where thousands of other patients with heel pain have benefited from the same successful treatment DiMaggio received for his infamous heel injury.