Can Chiropractic Care Help With Tendinitis?
Tendinitis occurs when the tissue that connects the muscle to the bone, otherwise known as the tendon, becomes inflamed and causes pain at the site of the injury. This can sometimes get so bad that it causes the shoulder to freeze up and lose motion. However, this disorder does not only happen in the shoulder area, it can occur virtually anywhere a tendon is present, such as the thumb, elbow, hip, knee and achilles.
Although tendinitis usually affects those over the age of 40, due to aging and weakening of the tendon, it is possible to occur in people who participate in activities that require working with your hands, such as sports, household chores, gardening and carpentry. Tendinitis is usually treated with corticosteroid injections, anti-inflammatory medications, physical therapy and sometimes even surgery.
Recently, it has been found that people who think they are suffering from tendinitis are actually experiencing tendonosis. Tendonosis is a significantly different disorder that requires completely different treatments in order to heal successfully. In most cases, there is underlying tissue damage that needs to be taken care of in order to fix the problem, something that injections and anti-inflammatory medications will not solve.
Understanding that chronic tendon pain is a medical condition is key to developing a successful treatment plan.
If it has been discovered that a patient’s tendinitis is actually tendonosis, then the treatment should involve a program that prevents the breaking down of collagen in the tendon.
The best way to heal this type of disorder is to make sure further collagen damage is averted and that collagen synthesis is promoted. Some of the best ways of insuring this is through a combination of rest and tendon strength training, which may be done effectively through chiropractic treatment.
The chronic pain experienced by those suffering with tendonosis is basically caused by the fact that the tendon itself is deteriorating, not due to any inflammation in the tendon area. Making the deteriorating tendon strong again may be done through exercise and chiropractic manipulation. This may help strengthen the tendon, which may possibly alleviate the joint pain. If patient’s are adamant about getting help and begin on a regular chiropractic therapy plan, they may see results in as soon as a week and may feel almost completely cured two months in.
It’s important to remember that when exercising, make sure to do low-impact strengthening that will not further damage the tendon. Traditional exercise, such as weight lifting, will only re-injure the affected area. Talk to your chiropractor about what type of therapy and exercise will work best for you.