What is Achilles Tendinopathy?

What is Achilles Tendinopathy?

Achilles tendinopathy is a condition where the large tendon connecting your calf muscles to your heel becomes damaged and inflamed. It involves degeneration of collagen fibers, thickening of the tendon, and disruption of normal healing.

The most common causes for Achilles tendinopathy include overuse from repetitive activities, sudden increases in exercise intensity, improper footwear, tight calf muscles, biomechanical issues, age-related degeneration, and certain medications.

Symptoms needing treatment for Achilles tendinopathy include pain and stiffness along the tendon, thickening or nodules, decreased strength and range of motion, swelling, and pain that worsens with activity and improves with rest.

The diagnosis process involved in Achilles tendinopathy includes clinical examination, patient history review, palpation of the tendon, functional testing, and imaging studies such as ultrasound or MRI to confirm diagnosis and rule out tears.

Conservative treatment options in Achilles tendinopathy include relative rest, eccentric strengthening exercises, proper footwear with heel lifts, physical therapy, ice therapy, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and addressing biomechanical issues.

Interventional treatment options for Achilles tendinopathy include platelet-rich plasma injections, high-volume image-guided injections, shockwave therapy, ultrasound-guided tenotomy, and regenerative therapies, with surgery reserved for resistant cases.

The goal of treatment of Achilles tendinopathy is to reduce pain and inflammation, restore tendon structure and function, correct underlying biomechanical issues, improve load tolerance, enable return to normal activities, and prevent recurrence.

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