PHYSIOTHERAPY Treatment FOR Tendonitis
Tendonitis can make everyday movements painful—whether it’s your shoulder, knee, elbow, or foot. At Flaman Physiotherapy, we focus on reducing inflammation, restoring strength, and helping you recover from overuse injuries safely and effectively.
Serving Saskatoon and surrounding areas.
Direct Billing Available
Experienced Physiotherapists
Personalized Treatment Plans
Are You Experiencing Tendonitis Symptoms?
While tendonitis is a specific type of tendon injury, it is somewhat of a catch-all term for any pain where the muscle attaches to the bone. When this tissue is damaged or irritated, it is often painful during any activity involving the muscle it is attached to, due to the mechanical pull of muscle contraction. You may be experiencing:
- Pain with movement or activity
- Tenderness around a joint
- Stiffness, especially after rest
- Swelling or mild inflammation
- Weakness in the affected area
- Pain that worsens with repetitive use
These symptoms are common in areas like the shoulder, knee, elbow, and foot.
What is Tendonitis?
Tendonitis is the irritation or inflammation of a tendon—the tissue that connects muscle to bone. It is often caused by repetitive strain, overuse, or sudden increases in activity. We often consider tendonitis a ‘recent’ or ‘new’ injury to the tissue; persistent inflammation of the tendon, with weakening of its overall mechanical strength, is often termed tendinosis; a proper catch-all term for any injury to a tendon, whether old or new, traumatic or repetitive, is tendinopathy.
While this may seem academic, it’s important to understand that a newer injury, though painful, likely still has more of its normal mechanical strength intact. Tendinosis may be less painful, but the longer-term inflammation and subsequent tissue changes mean it has likely lost more of its natural mechanical strength.
This means that a long-term tendon injury may make you more likely to develop a tear or rupture of that tendon, which has implications for how your rehabilitation program is designed.
Physiotherapy helps reduce strain on the tendon while improving strength and movement.
How We Treat Tendonitis at Flaman Physiotherapy
A full history and assessment allow your therapist to help determine the injured structures, the mechanism of injury, and how the injury is affecting your strength, mobility, and functional ability.
This will lead to the development of a treatment plan tailored to you and your injury, with the goal of improving your quality of life as quickly and safely as possible. Your treatment may include:
Biomechanical Assessment and Treatment
- Proper thorough assessment to determine the nature of the injury and develop a personalized treatment plan, followed when appropriate by hands-on manual therapy techniques to improve joint mobility and soft tissue extensibility.
Ultrasound/EMS
- Ultrasound can be very effective in reducing pain and swelling associated with tendonitis and bursitis, which can help improve the effectiveness of other physiotherapy treatments. TENS/EMS, alone or in combination with needling, helps relieve pain and loosen tight musculature in the region.
Radial Shockwave Therapy
- Extremely effective for calcific tendonitis, and also helpful with restoring joint mobility and soft tissue extensibility in the area of the injury. Its ability to stimulate the body’s natural repair processes helps with tendon healing.
Low-Level Laser Therapy
- LLLT can help with pain and inflammation in injured tendons and inflamed bursal regions
Graston Technique
- Instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilisation can be useful in cases of chronic scarring that limits tendon mobility and causes pain.
Gunn Intramuscular Stimulation (IMS)
- IMS needling to the affected muscles with or without electrical stimulation can mechanically loosen the muscle to decrease the load on the injured tendon, as well as normalize the neuromuscular system in the injured region.
Exercise and Strength Training
- Specific exercises based on the nature of the injury, especially the location and age of the injury, and your ultimate goals, will help to promote improved mobility, strength , blood flow to the injured area, and overall injury recovery. Specific activities pertinent to your injury are always provided.
Classical Acupuncture
- Helps reduce pain and inflammation while promoting recovery
These treatments are tailored to your specific condition and recovery goals.
How We Treat Tendonitis at Flaman Physiotherapy
A full history and assessment allow your therapist to help determine the injured structures, the mechanism of injury, and how the injury is affecting your strength, mobility, and functional ability.
This will lead to the development of a treatment plan tailored to you and your injury, with the goal of improving your quality of life as quickly and safely as possible. Your treatment may include:
Biomechanical Assessment and Treatment
- Proper thorough assessment to determine the nature of the injury and develop a personalized treatment plan, followed when appropriate by hands-on manual therapy techniques to improve joint mobility and soft tissue extensibility.
Ultrasound/EMS
- Ultrasound can be very effective in reducing pain and swelling associated with tendonitis and bursitis, which can help improve the effectiveness of other physiotherapy treatments. TENS/EMS, alone or in combination with needling, helps relieve pain and loosen tight musculature in the region.
Radial Shockwave Therapy
- Extremely effective for calcific tendonitis, and also helpful with restoring joint mobility and soft tissue extensibility in the area of the injury. Its ability to stimulate the body’s natural repair processes helps with tendon healing.
Low-Level Laser Therapy
- LLLT can help with pain and inflammation in injured tendons and inflamed bursal regions
Graston Technique
- Instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilisation can be useful in cases of chronic scarring that limits tendon mobility and causes pain.
Gunn Intramuscular Stimulation (IMS)
- IMS needling to the affected muscles with or without electrical stimulation can mechanically loosen the muscle to decrease the load on the injured tendon, as well as normalize the neuromuscular system in the injured region.
Exercise and Strength Training
- Specific exercises based on the nature of the injury, especially the location and age of the injury, and your ultimate goals, will help to promote improved mobility, strength , blood flow to the injured area, and overall injury recovery. Specific activities pertinent to your injury are always provided.
Classical Acupuncture
- Helps reduce pain and inflammation while promoting recovery
These treatments are tailored to your specific condition and recovery goals.
Common Tendonitis Conditions We Treat
Tendonitis can affect any area where a muscle attaches to the bone. The injured region may be the actual point of attachment, the junction between the muscle and the tendon, or the midpoint of the tendon itself. All of these will influence the appropriate treatments and exercises, even within the same tendon! Some areas are definitely more prone to tendonitis than others, and the most common areas include:
- The shoulder, including rotator cuff tendinopathies and bicep tendinopathy
- The elbow, with Medial (golfer's elbow) and Lateral (tennis elbow) epicondylitis.
- The Hip, with Gluteal tendinopathy and hip flexor tendinopathy.
- The knee, with superior and inferior pole patellar tendonitis (quad tendinitis, jumper's knee) and pes anserine tendonitis
- The ankle, with Achilles tendonitis.
Tendonitis can affect multiple areas of the body. We commonly treat:
- Shoulder Pain Physiotherapy
- Running Injury Physiotherapy
- Plantar Fasciitis Physiotherapy
- Knee Injury Physiotherapy
Addressing tendon issues early can prevent long-term pain and dysfunction.
Why Choose Flaman Physiotherapy for Tendonitis Treatment?
When you are experiencing pain that may be tendonitis, you can count on us to conduct a thorough assessment to determine the nature of the injury, identify the structure at fault, and develop a personalized plan to support your recovery. We offer a wide range of classical and advanced physiotherapy treatments to tailor your care to your specific injury. We provide:
- Personalized treatment plans based on your condition
- Focus on both pain relief and long-term prevention
- Combination of advanced therapy and active rehabilitation
Our goal is to help you return to full activity safely and confidently.
What You Can Expect From Treatment
With consistent treatment, most patients experience:
- Reduced pain and inflammation
- Improved mobility and flexibility
- Increased strength and endurance
- Better tolerance for activity and movement
- Lower risk of recurring injury
Early intervention leads to
faster and more effective recovery.
Tendonitis Treatment FAQs
How long does tendonitis take to heal?
Recovery depends on severity, but many patients improve within a few weeks with proper treatment.
Is shockwave therapy effective for tendonitis?
Yes, it is highly effective for chronic tendon conditions and helps stimulate tissue repair.
Should I rest or keep moving with tendonitis?
Rest may help initially, but guided movement and strengthening are key to recovery.
What causes tendonitis to worsen?
Repetitive strain, poor movement patterns, and returning to activity too quickly can worsen symptoms.
Can tendonitis become chronic?
Yes, if untreated. Early physiotherapy helps prevent long-term issues.
Physiotherapy Treatments
Proudly serving Saskatoon and surrounding areas.
Start Your Tendonitis Recovery Today
Don’t let tendon pain limit your movement or performance. With the right treatment plan, you can recover, rebuild strength, and return to your activities with confidence.
Proudly serving Saskatoon and surrounding areas.