Tendinopathy is an injury or disease affecting tendons, which connect bones to muscles. The two main types are tendinitis and tendinosis, with tendinosis being a chronic condition. Treatment involves rest, ice, and stretching, and recovery can be a long process.
Tendinopathy refers to any injury or disease that affects a tendon in the body. A tendon is a strong band of tissue that connects the body’s bones to muscles and can be found in many joints including the knee and ankle. The two main types of tendinopathy are tendinitis and tendinosis. Tendinitis is an inflammatory problem in a tendon while tendinosis is a chronic condition that often occurs after the period of inflammation has ended. In most cases the location of the tendinopathy defines its name, so Achilles tendonitis and patellar tendinosis are two common injuries.
A normal, healthy tendon will mostly contain collagen fibers arranged parallel to each other. Because of decreased blood flow to tendons compared to muscles, tendon injuries usually take much longer to heal. If injured, the tendon will normally go through three phases starting with inflammation and ending with remodeling, the process by which the tendon matures and returns to a normal state after injury.
If a tendon snaps or tears, it’s a particularly serious injury that can take a long time to heal. If a complete tendon rupture occurs, treatment may involve complex surgery to allow the tendon the best chance of repairing.
Tendinitis is a common type of tendinopathy, which is usually the result of repetitive movements that place great strain on a particular tendon. For example, patellar tendonitis is often caused by running due to the large amount of force transmitted with each step. Over time, micro tears in the tendon create a painful tear. Tendinitis can occur anywhere there is a tendon that is under great strain, although it is most common in the knee, ankle and shoulder. Treatment for tendonitis during the inflammatory phase usually involves rest, ice, and conservative stretching.
Tendinosis is commonly called chronic tendonitis or chronic tendinopathy. It is used to describe cellular damage to the tendon structure. The effects of tendinosis include pain similar to tendonitis and an increased risk of a complete tendon rupture. Tendinosis is often confused with tendonitis – even among medical professionals – due to the similar symptoms. The main difference in treatment is that tendinosis usually doesn’t respond to anti-inflammatory medications since it isn’t caused by inflammation.
If a tendon suffers from some form of tendinopathy, recovery can be a long process. It is thought that in many cases a tendon will never regain its initial strength. This is because the collagen that repairs the tendon is weaker than the original collagen.
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