Tendinitis can have various causes. This can be caused by high mechanical stress, bacterial infections or inflammatory rheumatic inflammation. The most common causes of tendon sheath inflammation are mechanical in nature.
In athletes, for example, this clinical picture is caused by a too rapid increase in the intensity or duration of exercise. Also frequent similar work in connection with a bad posture results in tendosynovitis, for example when typing while doing computer work. More rarely, however, tendosynovitis occurs as a result of bacterial infection or rheumatic diseases. The causative pathogens are usually staphylococci or streptococci, which penetrate the tendon sheaths when injured and can cause an infection there.
Causes on the wrist
Tendinitis of the wrist is one of the most common manifestations of acute or chronic inflammation of the tendon glides. It always occurs when there is permanent overloading or even incorrect loading of the forearm muscles and wrist: this permanent additional or incorrect loading then leads to an inflammatory process due to the constant friction of the tendons on the inside of the tendon sheaths surrounding them. Less common, but still possible, is the development of tendosynovitis on the wrist due to bacterial infections.
Rheumatoid arthritis – a chronic inflammatory disease of the joint skin – can also lead to the development of tendon sheath inflammation.
- In everyday life (monotonous movements during gardening, household chores, etc. ),
- At work (error ergonomics at work, computer work, craftsmen, musicians) or
- In sports (wrong sports techniques, too fast load increase, unaccustomed sports load) comes
Causes on the thumb
Tendovaginitis of the thumb – also called Tendovaginitis de Quervain – is characterized by a painful inflammation of the extensor tendon at the base of the thumb. This inflamed tendon compartment guides those tendons of the forearm muscles that are responsible for the abduction and extension of the thumb in the base joint. The thumb tendon sheaths, which are constricted by the inflammation, are usually triggered by incorrect and excessive strain on the tendons running in them, as may be the case, for example, when gardening, renovating, working with a computer mouse, riding a bicycle or motorcycle for long periods, making music or using a cell phone a lot (“SMS thumb”).
In addition, however, bacterial infections can also – although much less frequently – trigger a tendosynovitis of the thumb. In this case, the infection occurs either from the outside via injuries to the thumb or via a spread within the framework of a systemic infection. It is also possible that the development of tendosynovitis in rheumatoid arthritis is an underlying disease. General information can be found here: Tendinitis in the thumb
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