Tendinitis

• Tendinitis Overview
• Tendinitis Causes
• Tendinitis Symptoms
• When to Seek Medical Care
• Exams and Tests
• Tendinitis Treatment
• Self-Care at Home
• Medical Treatment
• Medications
• Other Therapy
• Next Steps
• Follow-up
• Prevention
• Outlook
• Synonyms and Keywords
• Authors and Editors

Tendinitis Overview

Tendons themselves are cords of tough, fibrous connective tissue that attach muscles to bones. Tendinitis is an inflammation of the tendon. The condition may also involve the tendon sheath, usually close to where the tendon goes into the muscle.

Tendons are generally healthy structures that appear glistening white to the naked eye. If you've ever carved a turkey, the tendons are the tough bands you cut through to get the drumsticks apart.

Tendinitis Causes

The most common cause of tendinitis is overuse and repetitive motion from recreational, athletic, or occupational activities.

These are some of the more common forms of tendinitis:

• Medial epicondylitis (also known as golfers elbow, baseball elbow, suitcase elbow) - Caused by forceful wrist flexion and pronation injuring the tendons that attach to the medial epicondyle of the humerus
  
  
• Lateral epicondylitis (tennis elbow) - Caused by continued stress on grasping muscles of the hand on rotation so the forearm faces upward or forward
  
  
• Rotator cuff tendinitis (swimmer's shoulder, tennis shoulder, pitcher's shoulder) - Caused by sports that require movement of the arm over the head repeatedly causing inflammation on the rotator cuff-a group of muscles that control shoulder rotation
  
  
• Peripatellar tendinitis (jumper's knee) - Caused by repetitive jumping, running, or cutting
  
  
• Popliteus tendinitis - Caused by downhill running or walking
  
  
• Achilles tendinitis - Caused by downhill running
  
  
• Trauma or thermal injury to the tendon
  
  
• Evidence of a strong association between the fluoroquinolone antibiotics and tendinitis