Mayo Clinic Health Manager
Get free personalized health guidance for you and your family.
Get StartedDefinition
By Mayo Clinic staffTendinitis is inflammation or irritation of a tendon — any one of the thick fibrous cords that attach muscles to bones. The condition causes pain and tenderness just outside a joint. While tendinitis can occur in any of your body's tendons, it's most common around your shoulders, elbows, wrists and heels.
Some common names for various tendinitis problems are:
- Tennis elbow
- Golfer's elbow
- Pitcher's shoulder
- Swimmer's shoulder
- Jumper's knee
If tendinitis is severe and leads to the rupture of a tendon, you may need surgical repair. But most cases of tendinitis can be successfully treated with rest and medications to reduce the pain and inflammation.
- Questions and answers about bursitis and tendinitis. National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases. http://www.niams.nih.gov/Health_Info/Bursitis/default.asp. Accessed Aug. 21, 2009.
- Koutouzis T, et al. Tendinopathy and bursitis. In: Marx JA, et al. Rosen's Emergency Medicine: Concepts and Clinical Practice. 6th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby Elsevier; 2006. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/155931764-3/878758260/1365/357.html#4-u1.0-B0-323-02845-4..50120-7--cesec2_5842. Accessed Aug. 21, 2009.
- Laskowski ER (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. Sept. 11, 2009.