Bursitis – What is it, Causes, Types and Symptoms!

Bursitis – What it is, Causes, Types and Symptoms that many must feel, but have no idea what it can be. In addition, with the muscle weakening that occurs in the elderly, this disease is more common in the elderly, but can affect people at any stage of life, especially manual workers, who make a lot of effort and repetitive efforts (one of the main causes of the disease ).

Bursitis can  affect any joint that is injured or infected, but generally, this disease affects the shoulder, as this joint has many bursae. It is also common in the knees, hips, elbows, and heels.

Shoulder pain is such a common condition that up to 70% of people will experience this type of pain at least once in their lives. Among the various possible causes of shoulder pain, shoulder bursitis  , also called subacromial bursitis or subdeltoid  bursitis  , is one of the most common.

Bursitis – What is it, Causes, Types and Symptoms

Symptoms: The main signs and symptoms of Bursitis are:

• Swelling, heat and redness in the joint;
• Stiffness and pain in the joints, especially when moving them;
• Sensitivity when pressing in the vicinity of the painful region;
• Limitation of joint mobility.

Causes: The most common cause of Bursitis is repetition of movements in certain joints or positions that can cause damage to the bursae. This can happen in the following situations:

• Some bursae, such as in the knee and elbow, lie just under the skin. These are the places in the body with the highest risk of trauma that can cause Bursitis ;
• Support yourself on your elbows for long periods of time;
• Throwing balls or lifting something over your head repeatedly
• Sitting for a long time, especially in uncomfortable places and with hard surfaces;
• Kneeling for long periods of time;
• In addition to chronic overuse of the joints, Bursitis can also be caused by orthopedic trauma, rheumatological processes, gout or by some type of infection. Sometimes the cause of Bursitis cannot be determined.

Types of Bursitis:  Bursitis  canaffect any joint that is injured or becomes infected, but generally, this disease affects the shoulder as this joint has many bursae. It is also common in the knees, hips, elbows, and heels.

Bursitis can  be divided into two groups: hemorrhagic and inflammatory disorders. Bleeding is caused by trauma that causes bloodshed (hemorrhage) directly into the bursa.

Inflammatory causes can be divided into three other subgroups: chemical causes, septic causes (infected wounds) and overload (constant friction of the tendon with the bursa). The types of Bursitis  are categorized according to the location of the inflammation of the bursa, they are:

Knee: Knee  bursae can become inflamed with bruising, continuous pressure from spending too much time kneeling or from repeated gestures. The knee joint is surrounded by five main bursae, which are:

• Prepatellar bursa: Located between the kneecap and the skin. Among the knee bursae, it is the one most likely to develop inflammation;
• Deep infrapatellar bursa: Located between the patellar tendon and Hoffa’s fat;
• Anserine bursa: Also called pes anserinus bursa, it is located on the inner surface of the knee, between the tendons of the gracilis, sartorius and semitendinosus muscles;
• Semimembranosus bursa: Located between the medial side of the knee and the semimembranosus tendon, at a higher level than the anserine bursa;
• Infrapatellar bursa: Located below the kneecap under the patella tendon.

Elbow:  Also known as olecranon  bursitis, the elbow bursa sits between the loose skin and the sharp bone at the back of the elbow. It is a common problem among tennis players, golfers, and other sportspeople who perform repetitive elbow flexion that eventually leads to injury or inflammation.

Shoulder:  Also called subacromial- subdeltoid  bursitis, the shoulder bursa is located below the acromion, upper end of the scapula, and the deltoid muscle. It is the most common type of the disease, caused by trauma, excessive and repetitive movements in the shoulder or inflammatory diseases. Often, this type of bursitis  is part of the Shoulder Impingement Syndrome, a pathology in which both the bursa and the shoulder muscles have inflammation and signs of tendinitis.

Ankles and Heels:  The retrocalcaneal bursa is located between the heel and the Achilles tendon, popularly called the Achilles tendon. This type of Bursitis  can be caused after long walks, wearing the wrong shoes or excessive loads and repetitive movements in the heel.

Hip:  The trochanteric bursa is located superficially on the greater trochanter bone, the part of the femur that protrudes from the side of the hip. Every individual has four or more bursae in each hip, with trochanteric bursitis being the most common inflammation to occur in this region.

In lower incidences, there are other bursae that can cause symptoms in the hip, such as the ischial bursa and the iliopsoas muscle, located next to the groin. Middle and long distance runners are more likely to get this type of Bursitis .

Buttocks:  The bursa located in the buttocks can become inflamed after sitting on hard surfaces for a long time, such as on a bicycle.

Thighs:  The bursa located in the thighs can become inflamed with wrong stretches.

Note:  It is important to look for a professional in case of acute pain or discomfort in any part of the body, so that he can accurately identify the condition and the treatment that is necessary. Bursitis , like many other conditions, is easiest to treat when identified early.