What should I do for tendonitis? First, you should make sure you have tendonitis by talking with a wellness professional or doctor. Then, you can learn more about the various treatment like massage therapy for tendonitis. But let’s start with learning what it is. Tendonitis is the infinitesimal tearing of the tendon fascicles due to overuse of the tendon, resulting in inflammation and irritation and thereby causing pain in the affected area. A tendon is a thick cord of fibrous tissue that attaches muscle to bone. Various names given to tendonitis problems are:
- Wrist tendonitis
- Achilles tendonitis
- Posterior tibial tendonitis
- Patellar (kneecap) tendonitis
- Rotator cuff tendonitis
- Tennis elbow (lateral epycondilitis)
- Golfer’s elbow
- Pitcher’s shoulder
- Jumper’s knee
- Swimmer’s shoulder
​Tendonitis can be caused by a broad array of activities, from gardening to sports, arthritis to ageing, or even anatomically (realignment of the tendon by surgery). Tendonitis symptoms can include tenderness, pain, inflammation, swelling or lumpiness on tendon sheaths, and adhesive capsulitis or “frozen shoulder”.
Conventional and Massage Therapies for Tendonitis
Treatments for tendonitis are rest, icing, discontinuation of heavy activities and application of anti-inflammatory medicines, with surgery as the last alternative. Massage therapy for tendonitis is also becoming extremely common as a cure. It can be applied by working on the injured fibers, back and forth–not up and down.
Massage should not be given until 48 hours after the injury, or if the tissues are swollen or noticeably inflamed. A self massage therapy for tendonitis is friction massage therapy. It is used in injuries caused on shoulder, elbow, back of the heel or thumb-side of the wrist. In this therapy strokes (back and forth) are applied perpendicular to the injury using gentle pressures with fingers and thumb. Studies have shown that friction massage stimulates the production of collagen in damaged tendon fibres, thereby healing the injured part rapidly. Trigger points in the forearm can be massaged to reduce an injury of tendonitis on the wrist.
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Specific Massage Techniques for Tendonitis Relief
Another massage therapy for tendonitis is known as DTFM, or deep transverse friction massage (also known as cyriax massage). Here, the fingers are used to make short back and forth motions around the injured area but do not slide over it. This helps in restoring mobility by moving across a ligament and mobilizing it. The active release technique is a patented soft tissue management treatment in which adhesions and scarred tissues are repaired. This is done by a practitioner with specific vigorous movements by the injured to liberate the connected tissue.
Sports massage therapy is ideal for Achilles tendonitis. It helps in breaking the scarred tissue resulting in a blood flow thereby healing and aiding in stretching of calf muscles. Calf massage therapy can be used to stretch and relax the gastrocnemius and soleus muscles thereby healing the aching heel. To cure an Achilles tendonitis massage therapies such as transverse mobilization (alternate finger and thumb to apply transverse pressure), effleurage (applying pressure from the heel to the knee), stripping the Achilles tendon (applying sustained pressure), cross frictions (applying pressure in a transverse direction) and circular frictions (applying pressure in a circular direction) can be used.
Massage therapies can decrease swelling, foster blood circulation and avert the development of adhesions. It is best to choose a massage therapist who possess the qualifications or experience with curing tendonitis.
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