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Patellar Tendonitis/Tendinitis (Jumpers Knee)What is it? Patella Tendonitis is a painful condition affecting the patellar tendon in the kneecap area. This condition is most common in an aging athlete who is involves in "jumping" sports such as basketball, volleyball and jogging. A person experiencing patellar tendonitis will have particular difficulty when running down hills. Occasionally other conditions may be associated with patellar tendonitis including diabetes, gout, para-hypothyroidism. Other conditions which can be a cause of anterior knee pain are commonly confused with patellar tendonitis. These conditions include quadriceps tendonitis, synovial plicae, chondromalacia, patello-femoral subluxation and hyper-pressure, fat pad impingement or Hoffa's syndrome and patello-femoral arthritis. TreatmentWhen treating patella tendinitis rest the area and avoid the particular activity that produced the condition. Anti-inflammatory medication, ultrasound treatment, regular cold compression, hamstring stretching and physiotherapy are all helpful. An ultrasound application over the affected area, will reduce swelling quickly and increase blood flow to the area - increasing the healing rate of the tendon.  If the strain is minor, your body may be able to heal the tendon fibers normally. Unfortunately, this is not the usual result because the injured tendon is being used instead of rested. Because of the stress on the tendon, your body heals the injured patellar tendon fibers by binding them together with fibrotic adhesions or scar tissue. This is done in an attempt to prevent further damage to the injured area. It is a normal protective response of the body. To prevent this apply ultrasound treatments on the area up to three times daily. Therapeutic ultrasound will naturally "work" the tendon, increasing its flexibly while softening and breaking down scar tissue - which is not something you want in your tendon. Scar tissue is inflexible (non-elastic), and can quickly lead to re-injury of the tendon later down the road. The trick to any tendon injury is getting it to heal with minimal scar tissue formation and with as much realignment of tendon fibers as possible. Even with optimum healing there is always less elasticity in a previously injured tendon. The trick is to make sure you heal the best you can, that way your chance of reinjury down the road is much lower than average - which is well over 50%. Otherwise, persistent symptoms will occur, eventually possibly leading to corrective surgery.
| Tendon Injury Facts: When the tendon gets inflamed it is known as tendonitis, and when the tendons are chronically overused, it may lead to microscopic tears in the collagen matrix and causes a gradual weakening of the tissues. Achilles tendonitis is a common injury among runners, as the Achilles tendon is responsible for helping you lift off the ground with each stride. As computers become ever more important elements of the work place and everyday life, incidents of wrist tendonitis are on the rise. Oral Medications can mask the pain but do not aid in the healing of tendonitis. Anti-inflammatories and pain killers can cause tendonitis to worsen. Ice and Compression are the easiest and most effective treatments for tendonitis. Dear MendMeShop, Hi my name is Angie, and I just wanted to tell everyone out there who is having problems with Tedonitis or Carpal Tunnel that last year I ordered the HT-901 Series Portable Ultrasound Device because my hands were almost completely numb from my job as an Upholsterer, started using my device as soon as I got it and my hands were almost completely normal in couple of months and I did not lose any time off work, this device is absolutely amazing. Angie Rating: Angie Vandeloo Dear MendMeShop, Hi Paul, In the Spring of 2008 I was using a gasoline powered weed trimmer without a shoulder support strap and developed a tendonitis in my right elbow where the weight of the trimmer was carried. I used ice packs and heating pads but little healing took place. I went to the Doctor and he sent me to a physical therapist who performed three weeks of ultrasound two times per week and some PT exercises. My elbow was not getting much better after 3-4 months post injury. Allow me to digress, I remembered that many years ago at our company health center a nurse trained me to use an ultrasound machine for a foot tendon problem called plantar fasciitis. I used this machine at least 15 times and after that my foot problem disappeared and never returned. Therefore, I concluded that an insufficient number of treatments were used on my elbow and I started looking on the internet to purchase an ultrasound device for myself. I came upon the Mend-Me-Shop Website. I purchased the unit an began using it 2-3 times per day per protocol. After 3-4 weeks my tendonitis was gone. It has not come back. Since that time, I have used it on Tendonitis in my right hand that I injured moving a refrigerator and my left elbow and arm which was strained using a gasoline power hedge trimmer. In both these instances your pulsed ultrasound device completely healed my tendon injury within a three month time period with no recurrence. I did not use the device continuously during that period but allowed for some weeks of no treatment before repeating the protocol. I have used this device now for two years plus and it seems very reliable - a quality piece of equipment. You can be sure that when I travel, I travel with this equipment. My only suggestion is that you design a cushioned carry bag accessory for this device and a bottle of gel that could be easily taken on trips. Thanks for all your help and the conversation. Rating: Stephen Bennett  Dear MendMeShop, I was hesitant to purchase the dorsal night splint since I thought that it would be awkward to sleep with, but with a limited budget I decided to purchase the splint and the freeze wrap for treating plantar fascitis. Within less than 2 weeks I noticed that I could walk without pain when I got up in the morning! This was amazing, since it usually took several minutes of severe limping before I could walk normally in the past. I just did a trip with my husband where we walked on hiking trails for up to 5 miles each day and my foot did just fine. I was amazed that I could do all this with only 2 weeks of treatment! Rating: Sandy Kubillus           |
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