Soft Tissue Rheumatism
Inflammation and pain can occur in soft tissues as a consequence of altered biomechanical factors or over activity. In an office setting, forearm and tendon tension can arise from poor or excessive use of a computer keyboard leading to tennis elbow, forearm tendinitis or carpal tunnel syndrome. Flat feet may cause problems in the lower limbs- resulting in pain around the heel, ankle or inner knee. An uneven gait pattern may result in pain over the outside of a hip, called trochanteric pain syndrome or bursitis.
There may be an underlying hypermobility syndrome, when a patient’s joints can be put through a greater range of movement than normal, predisposing to soft tissue rheumatism.
The treatment of these conditions depends on addressing any biomechanical factors and using exercise based physiotherapy to regain normal muscle and tendon health.
Cortisone injections often help ease the severe pain that accompanies these conditions.
