Patellar Tendonitis, Patellar 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 whose in 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.

Treatment

When treating patella tendinitis rest the area, expecially avoid the particular activity that produced the condition. Anti-inflammatory medication, ultrasound treatment, regular ice, 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 was minor, their 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, their 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 their body.

To prevent this the patient should apply ultrasound treatment on the area up to three times daily. Ultrasonic energy will naturally "work" the tendon, increasing its flexibily 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 reinjury 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 fibres as possible - something our therapeutic ultrasound device is great at! Even with optimum healing there is always less elasticity in a previously injured tendon. The trick is to make sure you heal this 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 leading to corrective surgery

A Black Body Radiant Energy Kit is one of the most helpful tools for a wide varity of painful knee related injuries and conditions. Through the absorption of radiant energy, tissues are safely and gently heated - increasing blood flow within the treated area. Your body's natural response to this increased temperature is to try to maintain a condition of homeostasis - a balanced environment or state of equilibrium throughout the body. To do this, your body responds with a rapid increase in blood flow to the area (this is known as vasodilation), increasing the supply of nutrients to injured cells and flushing out toxins (including lactic acid, commonly found in trigger points) to promote healing. Our Thermotex Knee Pain Relief Device provides effective, non-invasive, non-addictive pain relief with no side effects.

Our Cold Compression Wraps are recommended by countless medical professionals. That's why we sell them, because they are the best. We have noticed over time that our customers are so fond of our cold wraps that they are frequently coming back and ordering a second one. The wraps are becoming very popular with baseball and soccer trainers, and the wraps can be conveniently stored in a cooler for quick application on the field when needed.

Ultrasound therapy is also a helpful tool for pain prevention of knee injuires, and having a portable ultrasound device at home can be a powerful and convenient treatment tool. If you have symptoms or are recovering from a knee related injury, using ultrasound on a regular basis before your activity or throughout the day will help relax your muscles, tendons and tissues, diminish pain and inflammation, soften scar tissue and contribute greatly to the healing of your injury.

If you suffer from pain after certain activities or movements use ultrasound therapy when you complete the activity and then rest. Limit the application of ultrasound to a couple of treatments per day (the manual will recommend treatment frequency depending upon the injury). In between ultrasound treatments, maximize your pain relief and injury recovery by using the Thermotex Personal Therapy System. Proven Performance, Proven Relief - only found at MendMeShop.com. If you have been given a treatment plan by your health professional, make sure you adhere to it to ensure pain free living. In general, people who are committed to their therapies and exercises will have the best medical outcomes.