Dealing With Tendinitis

By Richard Prokop, Greenacres Press, Inc. (more articles from this author) 2000-04-25

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The other day while visiting my podiatrist, I asked my him if he sees many cases of tendinitis in his practice. It turns out that he sees quite a few each week—most of those being joggers.

"What do you tell them?", I asked.

"I tell them to stop jogging and to rest. Unfortunately, this is the last thing that a jogger wants to hear. Most of them want a quick cure that will allow them to keep running."

The last thing a pianist who has tendinitis wants to hear is "Stop playing and rest." Very often the pianist will go into denial and keep playing—leading to more aggravation and greater injury.

It is important to understand that the onset of tendinitis is simply the result of too much practicing. (A misinformed virtuoso once told me that tendinitis is caused by "wrong playing.") Within the medical profession, it is categorized as an "overuse injury." So don’t get bent out of shape if you have it. You haven’t done anything wrong. You will survive. Tendinitis is common among athletes—baseball pitchers are always icing their arms after a game and basketball players have been known to stand in buckets of ice water after a game to bring down the inflammation in their ankles. Did you know that when you walk, the shock to your ankles is the equivalent of 1.5 times your body weight, and that when you run the equivalent of 3 times your body weight comes crashing down on your ankles? Can you imagine the amount of shock imparted to your wrist and fingers during a five-hour practice session at the piano while playing the Romantic literature? Whoa!

Classical pianists are caught in a kind of Catch-22. They have to practice because they "owe" notes—meaning they are expected to play exactly what’s written on the page. A jazz player doesn’t owe any notes and can play whatever he/she likes as long as it sounds good. Even if a classical player has great technique they still have to practice hours and hours to learn the specific mechanical tasks associated with the pieces they are playing. There is also the added burden of working within an extremely competitive environment that includes concerts, lessons, competitions, etc…So it is understandable and even expected that some kind of injury will occur.

According to John Winget, P.T., tendinitis is "an inflammation of a tendon caused by overuse or trauma." Characteristically, there is a sharp pain, "Usually at a joint where the tendon attaches to a bone to which it is connected."

Again, the best remedy for tendinitis is rest. Inflammation of the tendon can be lessened by immersing the offending joint in a bowl or tray of ice water three or four times a day in the first twenty-four to forty-eight hours as needed. You will experience a kind of burning cold—I know that sounds strange—at the exact spot at which the tendon is inflamed. Seek medical advice if the inflammation lasts longer than 7-10 days, providing that you have used regular ice treatments and rested.

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