Have you been struggling with tendonitis and are frustrated with how long it takes to recover? Do you notice your pain worsens after a long day working on the computer? At Synergy Therapeutic Group, our occupational therapists can help resolve your tendon issues and, better yet, how to avoid one altogether! Tendons are connective tissue that attaches a muscle to a bone. Tendons help our bodies move by transmitting forces created in the muscles to our bones. Tendons also function to resist and absorb forces, specifically repetitive and high-tensile forces. When a tendon is injured, it can impact our ability to perform basic activities, like lifting a cup or glass to drink, to the most advanced, like playing a sport like tennis or a golf. Fortunately, occupational therapy can help identify the type of tendon problem you are experiencing and give you the tools to get back to doing what you’ve been avoiding.
Request an appointment with Synergy Therapeutic Group in Carbondale today, and let us help guide you back to health!
What are repetitive stress injuries, and how are they typically caused?
Repetitive stress injuries in the upper body affect the muscles, tendons, nerves, and ligaments. These injuries are typically caused by improper technique and/or overuse. Symptoms are usually described as tenderness, stiffness, or even tingling in the affected area.
Many sports, hobbies, and jobs require repetitive movements that can lead to overuse-type injuries, especially if the technique is incorrect. Overuse-type injuries are also common in groups participating in physically demanding activities like manual laborers and jobs that require computer use.
Tennis elbow and golfer’s elbow are related to the volume of movements needed to play the sport or improper technique and faulty mechanics. Often fatigue and weakness lead to these conditions, and a skilled occupational therapist can help you resolve the pain and restore strength to minimize future episodes.
Fortunately, at Synergy Therapeutic Group in Carbondale, our occupational therapists are highly skilled at treating all upper extremity repetitive stress-type injuries. We’ll identify the factors contributing to your condition and help you resolve it sooner than later!
What are the most common conditions affecting tendons?
There are a lot of possible causes for your painful tendon. Tendonopathy describes any problem with a tendon, including disease, injury, or disorder.
Tendinitis is defined as an inflammation of the tendon. Acute injuries, including minor or partial tearing, can produce an inflammatory response. These injuries heal quickly as they move through inflammation to tissue repair. One way to identify this condition is how quickly it heals.
Tendinosis describes a dysfunctional tendon and typically does not specify the pathological process. It generally is used to describe overuse-type conditions. Recent research has concluded that most overuse tendon pathologies do not have inflammatory cells. These disorders involve collagen breakdown. (Collagen is the main structural protein in tendons).
It is important to note that overuse tendon disorders often take a long time to heal because rebuilding collagen is a slow process. Treating degenerative collagen with anti-inflammatory medication, such as corticosteroid injections or oral medications, can impair the healing process!
Lumping all tendon injuries into the same category and treatment plan is likely the reason for the lack of improvement some people experience. Fortunately, our team at Synergy Therapeutic Group in Carbondale will help you distinguish between the different tendon problems and guide you through an individualized program to resolve and prevent future tendon issues.
What to expect at occupational therapy sessions
At Synergy Therapeutic Group in Carbondale, we will conduct a thorough evaluation that includes learning about how long you have been dealing with your injury. This will help us identify the type of condition you are dealing with. Once we know this information, we will design a program tailored to your needs.
The goal of tendon rehabilitation is to gradually progress the exercises to challenge the tendon without irritating it further. We will likely recommend an active rehabilitation program focusing on loading the tendon progressively. Loading means the cumulative amount of exercise you’re doing and can be changed by adding repetitions, sets, resistance, duration, and speed.
The key to recovery is ensuring it doesn’t happen again. Our Carbondale physical therapists will provide you with the education and exercise programs to ensure your tendons stay healthy so you can perform to the best of your ability again. We will also use targeted manual therapy techniques, splinting, and modalities as deemed appropriate by your therapist to assist your recovery process.
Request an appointment today!
At Synergy Therapeutic Group in Carbondale, occupational therapy are experts at treating tendon-related injuries and preventing future problems from reoccurring.
Call Call Synergy Therapeutic Group in Carbondale today to request an appointment with one of our specialists!
