Tendonitis Treatment | Tendonitis Types

Definition of Tendonitis: Inflammation of the Tendons

February 16th, 2007 Subscribe To Our Feed

What is Tendonitis?

Tendons are tough & flexible tissue that connects the bones to the muscle. This helps in many of our day to day activities. Running, walking, lifting and jumping are just to name a few. They also help in us moving in the many different ways that we do. When tendons become inflamed, that is what’s known as tendonitis. Carried to the next level (chronic tendonitis), tears can develop and cause a weakening of the actual tissue. This is due to the tendons being constantly overused. This can also lead to rheumatoid arthritis. This can be extremely painful and unpleasant. How to tell if you have tendonitis is a painful swelling in an area, and sometimes a partial tear can be seen and felt by the doctor.

Tendonitis can come in All Shapes and Sizes

You don’t want to cause harm to your tendons if you can avoid it. There are large tendons that are used for walking and then there are small tendons used for moving the fingers. Tendonitis can be caused by a number of different reasons. When you are pulling on a muscle that has tendonitis, this can become very irritating. The tendons should move freely, in a nice gliding action and if impaired can result in pain during this movement and this is called tendonitis.

What can Cause Tendonitis?

Overuse is very common cause
When people begin to exercise
Age related

Overuse is most common cause of tendonitis and occurs when people begin an exercise program or start to increase the amount of exercise they do. The tendons with age start to loose there elasticity and are not able to glide as smoothly as they once did. The elderly are more prone to tendonitis for this reason. Understanding why the elderly are more prone to tendonitis, still requires more research to fully understand and comprehend these causes of tendonitis.

Anatomical Reasons for Tendonitis

There may be anatomical reasons for getting tendonitis. Again the reason is the tendons don’t glide smoothly and become irritated and then become inflamed. Surgery is a common solution for this type of tendonitis. In the surgery the doctor will realign the tendon to allow for this smooth gliding motion. This will reduce if not eliminate the pain and inflammation that is caused by this type of tendonitis. There are many places that tendonitis can be felt.

Wrist
Achilles
Kneecaps
Rotator cuff

If these area’s become a problem for you and you develop tendonitis in them, it is best that you relax these areas as well as use ice on them to reduce the swelling. You can also take some anti inflammatory drugs or have cortisone injections. These injections have become an effective way of taking care of tendonitis.