Tendinitis is a painful condition resulting from inflammation of the tendon or its sheath. Almost any tendon is vulnerable, yet most cases of tendinitis occur in the limbs, resulting in debilitating pain. Medical breakthroughs in treating tendinitis recently have been made available and many others are on the horizon.
Shock Waves
Shock-wave therapy, also called sonic shock-wave treatment, is available to doctors as a new treatment option, and other methods of applying shock-wave to tendons are now being studied. Shock-wave therapy involves passing high-pressure sound energy through the skin and underlying tissues to aid the repair of cell damage, resulting in alleviating foot and ankle tendinitis symptoms.
Nitric Oxide
Nitric oxide is a chemical that plays a role in tendon healing. If supplements of arginine are taken, which stimulates nitric oxide formation, then tendon healing appears to increase. Also, clinical trials of nitric oxide delivery patches placed over areas of tendinitis show significantly reduced pain symptoms in patients and also increased range of motion and strength of the treated area.
Stem Cells
Stem cells are precursors to mature cells and have shown promise in repairing damage in several types of tissues throughout the body. Stem cells also have been studied for their effects to heal damaged tendons. When stem cells are injected into ruptured tendons, they have the ability to help repair the damage more effectively.
Platelet-Rich Plasma
Another new approach to healing tendinitis is using the patients’ own blood. The treatment involves drawing blood from a patient's arm and spinning it through a centrifuge to create a high concentration of platelets. This platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is injected into the injured tendon. The PCP reduces inflammation and accelerates healing. PRP has been used to repair elbow tendinitis as well as damaged Achilles, rotator cuff, hamstring and patellar tendons.
Vitamins
While very few scientific studies in people have investigated the effects of vitamins, many studies in rodents show beneficial effects of vitamins and minerals. For instance, it is known that orally administered vitamin E can stimulate activity of fibroblast cells. These cells produce collagen, and their stimulation causes them to produce more collagen, which is the basic mechanical structure of every tendon. More collagen fibers lead to increased tendon repair. This is an active area of research and may yield therapies in the near future.
Mechanical Massage
Several types of medical devices have been available to help alleviate tendinitis by passively restricting joint movement. However, a new type of device has been developed that uses mechanically controlled manipulating heads to automatically produce deep tissue massage and myofascial release on forearm flexor tendons. The device has proven to be effective in alleviating symptoms of tendinitis as well as carpal tunnel syndrome.
Steroid Injection
Another approach is to use X-ray guided steroid injections to pinpoint and infuse anti-inflammatory medication. The drug reduces swelling and the associated pain. According to Dr. M. Kumaravel, a developer of the technique, the procedure results in major improvement in hamstring tendonitis.
References
- Science Daily: X-Ray Guided Steroid Injections Effectively Treat Hamstring Tendonitis
- Ray Sahelian, M.D.
- Clinical Connection: Tendonitis Clinical Trials, Diagnosis, and Treatment
- Tendinosis.org: Current Treatments
- “European Neurological Society”’ The carpal therapist device for alleviating carpal tunnel syndrome; C. Walker; June, 2010
