Understanding More About The Different Kinds Of Tendinitis Pain

When age weakens the tendons around your joints, you become less flexible and can get injured more easily. But growing older isn't the only risk factor for tendinitis -- a condition characterized by pain or soreness surrounding a joint.

Playing certain sports or working in a particular occupation can increase your risk of developing tendinitis. That's why knowing which muscles can cause tendinitis pain helps you avoid activities that can lead to more damage or worsening symptoms.

Shoulder and Upper Arm Pain

Sports like swimming or tennis that involve raising your arm over your head can affect your shoulder muscles. Similarly, jobs that require frequent reaching, such as working on an assembly line, are a common cause of repetitive strain injuries that can cause inflammation in the shoulder tendons.

Depending on whether you develop biceps tendinitis or rotator cuff tendinitis, the pain you feel can be in the front of your shoulder or at the top of your shoulder and in your upper arm.

Elbow Pain

Injuries to the tendon in the outer elbow are referred to as tennis elbow, whereas golfer's elbow is an injury to the tendon in the inner elbow. The way you turn your wrist while playing golf can cause tenderness and pain. Although you feel pain near your elbow, it can travel down your forearm and into your hand.

Muscles that attach to the bones near your elbow allow you to move your wrist and fingers; therefore, jobs that require keyboarding can lead to elbow pain. Any job that requires the same repetitive motions every day puts stress on your joints, increasing your risk for developing tendinitis.

Carpenters, painters, and gardeners can develop tennis elbow. Activities, such as pruning shrubs, gripping paintbrushes and rollers, hammering nails, and using other hand tools, including screwdrivers, put pressure and force on muscles and tendons.

Knee Pain

Tendinitis of the knee can occur from power walking, running, and repeated or frequent jumping movements. Although you don't have to participate in a jumping sport to injure the patella tendon, jumper's knee is a common form of tendinitis that affects adult athletes. WebMD reports the condition affects as many as 20 percent of athletes who put repetitive stress on the kneecap tendon during jumping.

Sports like basketball and volleyball that involve landing after a jump can cause the tendons around the knees to stretch, swell, or tear. Pain occurs near the bottom front of the kneecap.

Leg Pain

If you're athletic, participating in sport activities, such as jogging, bowling, or bicycling that require repetitive motions, can lead to tendinitis. While athletes who play football, soccer, or basketball often suffer Achilles tendinitis, the condition can be a problem if you exercise infrequently and don't take the time to warm up beforehand to decrease muscle stiffness. Professional dancers who overuse the tendon that connects the calf muscle to the heel can also develop Achilles tendinitis.

Additional factors that can contribute to Achilles tendinitis include poor posture and the shoes you wear, according to the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society. Even climbing stairs can overwork already weak or tight calf muscles and lead to a tendinitis injury.

If you think you have tendinitis, visit a physical therapy clinic like Advance Physical Therapy & Sports Rehabilitation for treatment.