What is Tendonitis?

Chiropractic isn’t just about keeping your back strong and healthy. It’s a way to optimize wellness by ensuring the parts of the musculoskeletal system are working in harmony and reaching their full potential. At ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge, our Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo is a Certified Chiropractic Sports Physician, meaning that he is able to provide assistance to people suffering from tendonitis. This dysfunction of the connective tissue between muscles and bones is one of the most common sources of pain, so let’s take a closer look at what it is and how it is treated.

 

Skeletal muscles bundle into fibrous bands, called tendons, before inserting into bones. Tendons, unlike muscles, have poor blood supply, but they share being prone to fraying when overused or when they rub against a protrusion. Their fraying causes them to become weak, a condition known as “tendinosis,” and breakdown of tissue may trigger the body’s inflammatory response. An inflamed tendon is said to be suffering “tendonitis,” and if the lubricated sheath of synovial tissue surrounding it around it is inflamed, we call that “tenosynovitis.” An inflamed tendon will be sore, swollen, and stiff, and may continue to break down.

 

When a patient incurs tendonitis through overuse, we can help them to reduce inflammation through soft tissue therapies such as application of cold laser and electric stimulation. We may also perform extremity adjustments to restore subluxated joints in the limbs, addressing the underlying cause of wear by reducing the stress on tendons. Therapeutic exercise can increase the strength and flexibility of the soft tissues, making them less vulnerable to fraying in the future and increasing their blood supply, allowing them to heal faster.

 

Tendonitis may get worse on its own, but is highly responsive to uninvasive, non-addictive treatments. If you’re experiencing soreness in your limbs, schedule a visit to Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo at the ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.

 

Upper Crossed Syndrome

When people hunch over, they tend to develop an ache in their backs, necks, and shoulders. And when they continue to hold that position, they may end up weakening some muscles and overdeveloping others. “Upper Crossed Syndrome” is a term chiropractors use to describe a particular pattern of deformity in the upper body that usually results from poor posture. At ACT Wellness Center in Woodbridge, we provide treatments for this condition that will help a patient return to health, but they’ll have to continue maintaining good posture to avoid a relapse.

 

The trapezius and levator scapula are muscles that connect from the vertebrae to the bones of the shoulders. When a person hunches forward, those muscles get stretched and swollen, while the muscles in front of the chest become tight. In contrast, the muscles on the sides of the neck and lower in the shoulder become small and weak. When seen from the side, a line drawn between the tight muscles and a line drawn between the weak ones would form an x. The practical consequence of this is that the neck will be curved too far inward and the upper back too far outward, resulting in pain from the head to the ribs.

 

There are many strengthening exercises a person could do to restore the alignment of their neck and upper thorax, although we encourage patients to ask our chiropractor, Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo, for professional guidance on proper form. We can also determine whether a patient has incurred subluxations from the pressure being exerted on their vertebrae, and our chiropractic adjustments can help to gently stretch or relax their muscles in addition to realigning their spines.

 

Upper Crossed Syndrome is usually reversible, but treating it often requires lifestyle changes.  For help restoring upper body musculoskeletal health, schedule a visit to Dr. Carmelo Caratozzolo at the ACT Wellness Center, 14111 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, Virginia. Call 703-491-9355.