bursitis Archives - Relieve Foot Pain & Leg Pain https://www.bioped.com/tag/bursitis/ Custom Orthotics, Footcare, Compression and Bracing Thu, 30 Apr 2026 18:18:41 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0.2 https://www.bioped.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/cropped-favismall-32x32.png bursitis Archives - Relieve Foot Pain & Leg Pain https://www.bioped.com/tag/bursitis/ 32 32 Is it Bursitis or Tendinitis? Spot the Difference & Get Relief Today. https://www.bioped.com/blog/is-it-bursitis-or-tendinitis-spot-the-difference-get-relief-today/ Thu, 30 Apr 2026 18:18:41 +0000 https://www.bioped.com/?post_type=blog&p=26812 When you have pain in your lower extremity, whether it’s your hip, knee, ankle or foot, it can make everyday activities more difficult than they should be. There are many different conditions that cause lower extremity pain, but two of the more common causes are bursitis and tendonitis. While they may feel similar at first, they affect different structures in the body and may need slightly different approaches to treatment. Understanding the differences between these two conditions can help you take the right steps to recover and get back to doing more of what you love in life.

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]]> When you have pain in your lower extremity, whether it’s your hip, knee, ankle or foot, it can make everyday activities more difficult than they should be. There are many different conditions that cause lower extremity pain, but two of the more common causes are bursitis and tendonitis. While they may feel similar at first, they affect different structures in the body and may need slightly different approaches to treatment. Understanding the differences between these two conditions can help you take the right steps to recover and get back to doing more of what you love in life.

What is Bursitis?

Bursitis is the painful inflammation or irritation of a bursa. A bursa is a small, fluid-filled sac that acts as a cushion between bones and muscle tendons, reducing friction. You can find bursa at the hip, knee, heel and big toe. Symptoms of bursitis include:

  • Aching or stiff pain.
  • Tenderness when pressing on the area.
  • Swelling around the joint.
  • Pain that worsens with prolonged positions, like sitting at a desk for too long.

Bursitis pain often feels more localized and deeper, especially around the affected joint.

Common causes include repetitive motions, minor impacts, or overuse of the joint. Actions such as kneeling, squatting, running, cycling, or trauma to the joint (falling on the hip or knee) can irritate the bursa. However, bursitis can also be caused by problematic biomechanics, such as a leg length difference or abnormal gait.

What is Tendonitis?

Tendonitis is the inflammation or irritation of the tendons. Tendons are the connective tissue that connect muscle to the bones. Common areas for tendonitis to be found include the Achilles tendon (back of ankle), Patellar tendon (below the kneecap) and the Posterior tendon (runs along the inside of the ankle and foot). Some common symptoms of tendonitis are:

  • Pain with movement or activity.
  • Stiffness, especially after long periods of rest.
  • Mild swelling.
  • A pulling or tight sensation at the joint.

Tendonitis pain is often more noticeable during movement and lessens when at rest.

Common causes are sudden increases in movement, running, especially on uneven surfaces, tight calf muscles, improper biomechanics and abnormal gait. Other factors can contribute, such as pregnancy weight and weight gain, because it puts extra strain on the lower extremities, age, and even certain medications can weaken tendons.

Treatment Options

While both conditions benefit from early intervention, timelines for healing may vary. Both conditions can be treated with the following:

  1. Rest and activity modification: Avoid repetitive movement whenever possible.
  2. Ice application: No more than 20 minutes of ice at one time (never put ice or frozen compress directly against the skin; always wrap the ice or compress in a towel).
  3. Gentle stretching and strengthening, a physiotherapist can help with specific exercises and stretching for the injured area.
  4. Supportive footwear: properly fit supportive shoes can help to align the foot and take pressure off the ankle, knee and hip.
  5. Orthotics: help to properly align the foot and support the arch, taking pressure of the ankle, knee and hips.
  6. Compression: Compression sleeves and socks help to reduce the swelling, support circulation and tissue recovery and can provide stability and comfort to the injured area.

Bursitis and tendonitis may feel similar, but they involve different parts of the body. Paying attention to your symptoms and quickly seeking treatment can help you recover faster. A BioPed clinician can assess your gait and help guide you into the right footwear, orthotics or compression option. Incorporating such tools can help support your recovery and help you do more of what you love.

The post Is it Bursitis or Tendinitis? Spot the Difference & Get Relief Today. appeared first on Relieve Foot Pain & Leg Pain.

]]> 26812 What is Bursitis? https://www.bioped.com/blog/what-is-bursitis/ Thu, 05 May 2022 13:01:06 +0000 https://www.bioped.com/?post_type=blogs&p=19332 Bursitis is the inflammation of a bursa, a fluid-filled sac located over tendons and joints in the body.

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Bursitis is the inflammation of a bursa, a fluid-filled sac located over tendons and joints in the body. A bursa acts as a cushion and helps the tendon and tissues glide over one another. The most common causes of bursitis are injury, overuse or repetitive force on a joint or excess pressure. At BioPed Footcare, we are a team of lower limb clinicians who assess and treat pain in the lower extremity. Our clinicians also aim to help prevent pain from occurring in the first place. Foot pain is not normal and should always be a reason for concern.

Understanding bursitis

The tissues and structures in our bodies are tough. Excessive repetitive force, unexpected acute injury or an abnormal amount of pressure and these tissues may start to break down. Like any other tissue, bursae can become inflamed and painful.

There are over 150 bursae in the body. Depending on where in the body they are located, the bursitis is named accordingly. There are several bursae located in the foot, the most common ones being at the back of the heel, on the side of the big toe and the ball of the foot.

Bursitis can be mistaken for Arthritis, Tendinitis, Gout or Cellulitis.

Bursitis is often red or swollen and warm to the touch. Before treatment measures are discussed, bursitis should be diagnosed. A BioPed clinician will take a history of your pain, activity level, footwear choices and what eases or aggravates the pain in the area. They will also conduct a biomechanical assessment and gait analysis to determine why your heel, big toe or ball of your foot may have an inflamed bursa.

A bursa can also become infected, known as Septic Bursitis. This infection is caused by bacteria entering the bursa through a cut or scrape, directly from the blood or from the surrounding tissues. In addition to pain, swelling and increased temperature in the area, one may experience fever, chills and a generalized unwell feeling with septic bursitis. Oral antibiotics are needed to treat the infection and prevent further complications.

Treatment

If the Bursitis is due to instability or hypermobility in the feet, your BioPed clinician will devise a plan to control this and add support. Custom foot orthotics will provide stability and control. Supportive footwear, suitable for the activity, will help to stabilize and protect your joints and structures from pressure and trauma. Inflammation is interchangeable with an increase in temperature. Therefore application of cold therapy is necessary. In addition, anti-inflammatory medication is taken orally or applied topically and directly to the site both helping ease inflammation.

Bursitis also responds well to rest. This is important as it gives the bursa a chance to heal. If the pain is worse at night, try changing your sleep position to reduce the amount of pressure on a particular area such as the back of your heel.

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