Caused by overuse of a joint, it could lead to tearing of tendons in severe cases. It is characterized by swelling, pain, and tenderness in the affected joint. The condition can be treated using anti-inflammatory medications.
Very common
More than 3 million cases per year in US
Treatment from medical professional advised
Often requires lab test or imaging
Can last several months or years
Urgent medical attention recommended in severe cases
Common for ages 35-50
Tendinitis is inflammation or irritation of a tendon — the thick fibrous cords that attach muscle to bone. The condition causes pain and tenderness just outside a joint.
While tendinitis can occur in any of your tendons, it’s most common around your shoulders, elbows, wrists, knees and heels.
- Pain at or around a joint
- Gradual or sudden, severe pain at the affected part
- Stiffness or loss of motion in the affected joint
- Tenderness
- Mild swelling or thickening
Repetitive trauma or stress on the same joint is what results in tendonitis. This trauma or stress may be due to:
- Poor sporting technique and inappropriate sporting equipment
- Calcium deposits along the tendon
- Bone spurs on the heels
- Extreme and regular physical effort such as intensive sport training schedule
- Occupations such as gardening, house cleaning, etc
- Age, as tendons become weak and less flexible in older people
- Sports such as tennis, basketball, swimming, etc
- Abnormally placed joints
- Stress from arthritis such as rheumatoid and osteoarthritis
- Rarely exercising
- Infections
- Obesity
- Warm-up before you begin your exercises
- Do not exercise if there is pain
- Maintain a healthy height-to-weight ratio
- Cross-train, that is, mix up an intensive exercise with a low impact exercise
- If your technique in an exercise or activity is flawed, take professional help and improve your technique
- Use proper workplace ergonomics and maintain the right posture
- Tendon tear or rupture
- Tendinosis or degenerative changes in the tendon, including abnormal growth of new blood vessels
Doctor will ask about symptoms.
There has been a critical error on this website.