Dealing with Acute Tendonitis
What is Acute Tendonitis?
Our bodies use tendons everyday to stretch, pull and move. Tendons are cord-like pieces of soft tissue that connect our muscles to our bones. We have about 400 tendons in our bodies.
Overworking or overloading one area of the body can cause small microscope tears in the tendon. Your body responds by inflaming the tissue to try and heal it, creating a condition known as acute tendinitis. This is your body's way of telling you that you're putting too much stress on your muscle or joint. Your tendon will repair itself quickly if the damage is only slight or is caused by something that may only happen occasionally. If the damage causing your acute tendonitis happens frequently, the pain will continue and the condition may turn into chronic tendonitis.
For some people it may even take weeks or months to get a proper diagnosis and figure out what's causing your pain. For those people, treatment and healing will take even longer because you may spend weeks or months treating an area that's not the true root cause of your symptoms.
If it's now been 3 to 4 weeks with this injury and the pain is still there you could be resting your injury too much, not resting it nearly enough or still waiting for a proper diagnosis on your condition. Even while waiting for a diagnosis, rest is very important for the first few weeks of an acute tendonitis injury. Resting the area and using a Cold Compress or Ice Pack will most likely make a big difference by stopping the damage that's happening to your tendon. Stopping the amount of damage going on in your tendon should be your first priority because it will help to minimize the total amount of time needed to heal.
Once the swelling is gone, moving the tendon and applying a Deep Heat device like the T•Shellz Wrap® is really what is needed for completing the recovery cycle. This is critical because tendons are known to receive very little natural blood flow and blood flow is really how your body is able to heal itself. When the tendon tissue is damaged, the already-reduced blood flow is decreased down to a trickle which is why movement is encouraged - it helps get blood flow to where it is needed.
Blood flow (healthy circulation) is an important part of natural tissue healing. Injured tendons take the nutrients available in local blood flow (like oxygen, antibodies, white blood cells and healing agents) to get rid of any damaged tissue and start growing healthy tissue.
Sometimes Tendons Can't Receive Enough Natural Blood Flow for Healing
In some cases of acute tendonitis, the micro-tearing is located in an area known as the watershed zone.
The watershed zone is basically a part of the tendon that has the weakest amount of blood supply (even when it's completely healthy with no tears). This area usually gets blood supply from peripheral veins. This reduced blood supply makes the watershed zone an area of your tendon that's prone to injury and a poor healing response.
Many tendons in the body are known to have watershed zones that are prone to tendon tears. Some of the tendons that have a watershed zone include the Achilles tendon, the posterior tibial tendon in the foot / ankle, the rotator cuff (supraspinatus) tendon in your shoulder, the bicep and tricep tendons in your arm and the flexor tendons in your hand.
Deep Heat Increases Blood Circulation
Greater Blood Circulation Results in Faster Healing of Soft Tissue
T•Shellz Wrap® = Deep Heat
T•Shellz Wraps® contain a unique Carbon Fiber Energy Pad which is flexible and will shape to conform to your body. This Energy Pad emits a uniform wave of perfectly safe electromagnetic energy over its entire surface. This energy travels deep inside to the soft tissue in your body, stimulating blood flow your own body needs to heal your injury. It is the electromagnetic energy that is crucial to the healing process.
Best of all...
The T•Shellz Wrap® is an FDA Registered Medical Device and is suitable for use in therapeutic clinics and FROM HOME. It is completely safe for people and patients to use for themselves.
As mentioned earlier, the use of electromagnetic energy is becoming much more commonplace in North America for everyday people. The technology has been used for decades in the worlds of professional and amateur - a contributing factor as to why athletes seem to recover from injuries so quickly.
Have you ever wondered by an athlete can return to activity after 3 or 4 weeks following a tendon injury - while your average person takes much longer to return back to normal? The secret isn't really that much of a secret - it involves consistent treatments (meaning multiple times a day) using a diathermy treatment like the T•Shellz Wrap® to stimulate blood flow to injured soft tissue. Most athletes have the luxury of using in-house therapy facilities many times per day.
How many us can afford the time and money to visit a therapy clinic multiple times a day? Very few indeed. This is how you can gain the same advantage that athletes enjoy in healing their own injuries - by using a device like the Shoulder T•Shellz Wrap® two or three times a day on a consistent basis.
Consistent Treatments = Consistent And Long Term Improvement
Click HERE to Go To Our Online Store If you have questions, call our office at 1-866-237-9608 (toll free continental US).
What Else Makes the T•Shellz Wrap® So Special?
We believe the T•Shellz Wrap® to be one of the most effective treatments to stimulate blood flow to dense, injured tissues such as muscles, tendons, ligaments, and other similar tissues.
We can promise that you will receive a product that is designed to be safe and does what it is supposed to do...quickly relieve pain and aid in the recovery from tendon, muscle and other soft tissue injuries.
The unit plugs into a standard wall outlet to get its power. The nice thing about the power supply is that the same unit can be used in North America and overseas as well. It has the capability to operate between 110v and 230v.
It has a special signal controller that can be set for 3 different power levels of application (3=High, 2=Medium, 1=Low). The cord is long so you can sit or lie comfortably and watch TV, read or surf the net while you're using it.
Treatments are max 30 minutes in duration and the device can be worn over clothing. This allows you to use the device at work, at home, or really anywhere you have access to an electrical outlet.
A Recap of the Benefits of the T•Shellz Wrap®..
- Wraps are available for all major joints - very versatile!
- Targeted treatment of Tendinosis, Tenosynovitis, Tendon Tears, Bursitis, Impingement, Arthritis, etc
- It can be used before exercise to warm up your tendons and muscles to reduce the risk of injury
- FDA Registered medical device for use in home or clinics - very high quality
- Increases temporary flexibility and length of tissues (reducing the re-injury factor)
- Carbon fiber Energy Pad is strong, lightweight, and flexible - contours very easily
- It soothes pain and whisks away toxins
- It provides deep heat, which the body responds to by increasing blood flow. Increased blood flow enhances the healing rate - saving time and money when associated with extended doctor or physical therapist visits
- it is an outstanding tool for post-surgery rehabilitation, getting you back to work faster
When Should I Use My T•Shellz Wrap® During the Day?
The most common question we receive from individuals prior to purchasing is - how many times a day should I be using my wrap and when should I be using them? While treatment plans will differ for each individual and their specific injury, there are general guidelines that should be adhered to.
- Use a Cold Compress or Ice Pack when you are experiencing inflammation (usually after exertion or movement of the injury area).
The T•Shellz Wrap® would then be used:
- Right after rising from bed in the morning (as this is when it is most stiff)
- Prior to going to bed at night (to relax the area and allow for better sleep)
- Before you know you will be using your injured joint (going to work, driving, typing, etc).
What Causes Acute Tendonitis?
There are many causes of acute tendonitis, some of them include:
- Overusing / overloading your arm, shoulder, elbow or knee. This can happen to a retired person working in their garden too long, a well-trained athlete who is pushing themselves too much too soon (or who has poor technique), a factory worker who assembles parts with repetitive actions of the arms or wrist.
- Lifting or carrying heavy objects, participating in sports like lifting weights or having a job that requires you to carry boxes all day can also lead to acute tendonitis injuries.
- Participating in casual athletic activity on weekends or after work. This problem is commonly seen with "weekend warrior" athletes, who sit at a desk all week and then play softball or tennis all day on the weekend.
- Trauma such as a fall or misstep.
- People who are overweight are at a higher risk of developing tendonitis because the additional weight increases pressure on the tendons.
- Some inflammatory conditions (ie. Reiter syndrome or ankylosing spondylitis), autoimmune disorders (ie. type 1 diabetes), and some infections may also put you at risk of getting acute tendonitis.
- Major joints in the body are more likely to be affected by tendinitis. This includes the shoulder (rotator cuff tendinitis), elbow (tennis elbow or golfer's elbow), wrist and thumb (flexor tendinitis, extensor tendinitis, de Quervain's syndrome), knee (jumper's knee), ankle (Achilles tendinitis), and hip (hip flexor tendinitis).
What are the Symptoms of Acute Tendonitis?
Tendonitis can have 3 stages of symptoms:
Stage 1 - Inflammation to the damaged tendon will cause you to have swelling, warmth, redness or a burning pain. You may feel pain and tenderness right outside the affected joint.
Stage 2 - The pain is worse when you move the affected area. Stiffness in the morning or after long-periods of rest or inactivity may also occur.
Stage 3 - At this point people usually experience constant pain. This stage is leading to your condition turning into chronic tendonitis.
Anyone can suffer from acute tendinitis, but it's most common in adults due to degeneration of tissue as we age, over time the tendons will wear down. This is where the fibers in your tendons will become weaker - it's just a natural process that happens as we age.
Acute or sudden tendinitis may become chronic or long-lasting if it isn't treated correctly. We rest for a few days and think once swelling or inflammation (the pain) is gone that the injury is better. We also make the mistake of returning to regular activities too soon without proper time for healing. The truth is that healing takes time and after the swelling is gone your injury is not even close to being fully healed.
You might have acute tendonitis if:
- You have pain, swelling, redness or heat sensation, in the area that's injured.
- You've experienced a sudden popping, crackling, or grating feeling followed by intense pain.
- You've fallen, tripped or was in some kind of sudden accident that caused a great deal of pain around one of your joints.
- All movement including your ability to walk, run, jump, carry or pick up objects and other activities you would normally do is reduced or impaired - with a decreased range of motion in the affected area.
- You have an on-going injury that you wish had healed by now, but the pain, swelling and/or inflammation just won't go away.
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During your recovery, you will probably have to modify and/or eliminate any activities that cause pain or discomfort at the location of your soft tissue injury until the pain and inflammation settle. Always consult your doctor and/or Physical Therapist before using any of our outstanding products, to make sure they are right for you and your condition. The more diligent you are with your treatment and rehabilitation, the faster you will see successful results!
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