Synonyms
Inflammation of the Achilles tendon, tendinitis of the Achilles tendon, tendopathy of the Achilles tendon
Definition Achilles tendonitis
Achilles tendonitis is a common cause of pain at and above the heel. This usually results from a pathological change or minor injury to the Achilles tendon as a result of
- Overloads or
- Physical changes, such as muscle shortening. – Inflammation in the classical sense is rarely the cause of the complaints.
The Achilles tendon inflammation usually leads to 2 – 6 centimeters further above the insertion of the Achilles tendon at the heel bone, as well as to limited mobility and reduced athletic performance. The Achilles tendon inflammation can be distinguished from Achillodynia, which is a pain syndrome in the area of the Achilles tendon, which is usually not accompanied by inflammation and occurs especially during intense athletic activity. – Pain and
- Swelling in the affected area,
The concept of Achilles tendonitis
Current research results show that Achilles tendonitis is not an inflammation in the classical sense. For this reason, it has become common practice in recent years to refer to this clinical picture as tendopathy of the Achilles tendon. This is justified with the fact that no inflammation foci or inflammation cells (e.g. leukocytes) were found during examination, but only destroyed (degenerated) tissue with irregular structure.
The origin (etiology)
The Achilles tendonitis can be either In the case of acute Achilles tendonitis, the symptoms occur for a few days, usually as a result of increased training. With chronic Achilles tendonitis, the complaints occur over a longer period of time and are usually independent of short-term stress. In addition to this classification, the location of the pain can be determined.
Most pain occurs either at the point of attachment on the heel (calcaneus) or in the middle part of the Achilles tendon, about 4 cm above the point of attachment. Because of the poor blood supply, such injuries heal very slowly. – acute or
- Chronic.
Gyrase inhibitors, which also include the drug ciprofloxacin, are antibiotics that can interfere with the DNA metabolism of bacteria and thus combat them. At the beginning of the 1990s, it became known for some drugs in this group of active ingredients that undesired side effects, including Achilles tendonitis, were more frequent when taking these drugs. Some studies that dealt with this topic came to the conclusion that these side effects could indeed be associated with some of the drugs in the gyrase inhibitor series. For example, a representative study from the Netherlands found a correlation between Achilles tendonitis and the drug ofloxacin, whereas the side effects were less frequent when other gyrase inhibitors such as ciprofloxacin or other antibiotics were administered. In summary, one should always think of a side effect caused by a gyrase inhibitor (especially Ofloxacin or Ciprofloxacin) in cases of unclear and especially bilateral Achilles tendonitis.
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