TENDONITIS TREATMENT BURNABY
WHAT IS TENDONITIS?
People often seek Physiotherapy treatment for tendonitis. But what is tendonitis?
Tendonitis is the inflammation of a tendon. Often people get confused about what and where a tendon is located. A tendon is attached to the end of a muscle, and the function of the tendon is to attach the muscle to the bone. When you move a limb, the muscle contracts and shortens and it pulls on the bone to make the limb move. This is how movement occurs. Without tendons, our muscles and limbs will not be able to move!
Each muscle has 2 tendons since each muscle originates in one spot, and attaches to another spot. Tendons are built to withstand a lot of stress but they have a limit. A tendon gets inflamed with there is too much pulling – so much that you start to create too many small little tears causing an inflammatory response. This is called tendonitis. Early physiotherapy treatment for tendonitis ensures a speedy and optimal recovery.
WHAT CAUSES TENDONITIS?
Tendonitis is caused by overuse. There is simply too much pulling on that tendon and not enough rest for the tendon to heal. Sometimes tendonitis can develop after trauma where you injure the tendon but continue to use it without allowing it to properly heal.
Certain sports and occupations that require repetitive motions are a common cause of tendonitis. This includes sports like running, tennis, swimming, baseball. Occupations that require a lot of repetitive motions or sustained positions can lead to tendonitis.
Some common areas where tendonitis can occur are:
Outside of the elbow – Tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis)
Inside of the elbow – Golfer’s elbow (medial epicondylitis)
In the shoulder – Rotator cuff tendonitis
At the patella – Patellar tendonitis
At the Achilles – Achilles tendonitis
WHAT DOES TENDONITIS FEEL LIKE?
Tendonitis often shows as a slow onset of discomfort which worsens over time. You may feel like the area is a bit tight and sore, but still able to continue your activities. The pain can get worse throughout the day, and feel better after some rest.
The discomfort and pain generally get worse and worse as time goes by until you realize you cannot even do some of your daily activities, or you end up losing some of your range of motion. You may also see some swelling in the painful area, and it can be tender to touch. The surrounding muscles are also tight and painful when you try to massage them yourself. This is the part where people seek Physiotherapy treatment for tendonitis.
TENDONITIS TREATMENT DIY
1) Ice and Rest
Since tendonitis is often an overuse injury, the first thing you need to do is to REST THE TENDON! This is the most effective first step to tendonitis treatment, yet the hardest part for many people. Without rest, the inflammation cannot settle. If there are signs of swelling, ice the area to help settle the inflammation.
2) Splints
If you are not able to sufficiently rest this area throughout the day, using a splint for the injured area will help minimize stress to the tendon.
3) Gentle stretching and massage
Often the muscle attached to the tendon is tight which also pulls on the tendon. Light stretching and massage of the affected muscle will help decrease the stress on the tendon.
4) Vary your activities
Cross-training in sports is a good way to vary up the load on the tendons. For example, instead of constantly running to improve your cardio, try adding biking or swimming. If your injury is caused by your occupation, you can try changing positions throughout the day to help decrease the load.
5) Strengthen
The last step to treating tendonitis is strengthening. After an injury, the body heals itself with scar tissue. This tissue is not as strong as your normal tendon, and strengthening exercises will help remodel and strengthen it.
EASTWEST PHYSIOTHERAPY TENDONITIS TREATMENT
Our Physiotherapy treatment for tendonitis and help speed up your recovery. We can use a variety of approaches to optimize your tissue healing:
1) Ultrasound therapy
This can increase circulation to the area to help with the removal of inflammatory chemicals, and the breakdown of scar tissue.
2) Electrical therapy
This can help with managing your pain, improving circulation to the area to clear inflammatory chemicals, and relaxing muscles.
3) Acupuncture
Our physiotherapists in Burnaby are trained to and able to use this modality. Acupuncture can help with decreasing pain, increasing circulation, releasing tight muscles, and promoting healing to the injured area.
4) Exercise
Our Burnaby physiotherapists will teach you the correct exercises to relax and strengthen the muscles. They will also direct you in how to modify your activities, and positions to minimize the stress on your tendon.
5) Manual therapy
There are different manual therapy techniques that can help improve motion, decrease tension, and decrease inflammation to promote healing. For example, retrograde massage can help with decreasing swelling, and joint mobilizations can help improve your range of motion.
Contact us today to start your tendonitis treatment in our Burnaby Physiotherapy clinic.
