Synonym
Tendon ruptureThe tendon is the term used to describe the connective tissue of our muscles. Tendons are there to provide the respective muscles with an origin or attachment to bones or other muscles and to enable the transfer of force from the muscle to the skeleton. In structural terms, a tendon consists of taut connective tissue and emerges seamlessly from the ends of the muscles.
Via the tendons, the muscles can therefore be fixed to various structures, but mostly to bones. The connection of two or more muscles without bony involvement is called intermediate tendon. The intermediate tendon separates the muscle belly of the respective muscle into 2 parts.
In general, the tendons can also be divided into tensile and sliding tendons. This differentiation is made according to the course depending on the direction of action of the muscle: A tensile tendon is only stressed by tensile load, since it has the same course as the muscle and therefore the direction of action is the same. A sliding tendon, on the other hand, is stressed not only by tension but also by pressure, since it does not have the same course as the direction of action of its muscle.
Like all structures of the locomotor system, tendons can also be damaged. In addition to inflammatory or degenerative changes, the rupture of the tendon plays a major role. A tendon can tear completely or only partially.
Due to various characteristics, tendons are in principle very susceptible to ruptures. On the one hand, tendons are not very elastic and on the other hand, they have a poor ability to regenerate because they are poorly innervated and have poor blood supply. The nutrition is provided by a special tissue fluid which is located around the tendons. In most cases, tendons attach to bony structures, so that their involvement is not untypical in the event of a torn tendon. This is called an avulsion fracture if, in addition to the torn tendon, the bone at the site where the tendon is attached is also broken.
All articles in this series: