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The Tendon Treatment Center is located in the UNC Orthopaedics Carolina Point II location. Its focus is on the evaluation and treatment of acute and chronic tendon injuries.

Closeup shot of a woman running on a trail on a misty morning

UNC Tendon Treatment Center

The Tendon Treatment Center is a comprehensive evaluation and treatment program that provides patients with access to cutting edge medical and technological treatment options for acute and chronic tendon injuries.  Our team-based approach to tendon care includes conventional and advanced methods to determine the issue as well as many newer treatment options aimed at correcting the specific issue for each individual.

Our care team has vast clinical experiences and has conducted research with athletes (professional and collegiate levels) as well as the general population. Combined with inter-disciplinary treatment options including medical management, injections, ortho-biologics, and minimally invasive surgical procedures. This Center has been identified as the place to come if you have nagging tendon injuries or undiagnosed pain.

Our Team

Our team consists of non-surgical tendon specialists as well as orthopaedic surgeons, advanced musculoskeletal radiologists, sports physical therapists and more. We embody a team approach to your problem and work together to solve these often complex and difficult conditions.

Conditions we treat:

All varieties of tendinitis (shoulder, elbow, wrist, hand, hip, knee, ankle, and foot).

We evaluate and treat both acute and chronic tendon complaints.

We are also experts in treating conditions like plantar fasciitis and other conditions that are not related to a tendon but are similar in function and structure.

Our Imaging Technology

Advanced imaging is used in combination with a detailed history and physical exam to assist with identifying the specific issues relevant to each patient and their tendon issue. Our providers may use a variety of imaging technology to diagnose your problem. This could include x-rays, ultrasound, MRI, and/or CT scan. We also are working to incorporate newer technology such as elastography and Ultrasound Tissue Characterization (UTC) into our evaluations when appropriate.

Treatment Options

The treatment of tendon pain is often complex and may require a variety of different treatments to be effective. The Tendon Treatment Center provides access to a wide range of treatment options. Treatments could include monitoring for healing, rest, physical therapy, bracing, medication, injections, minimally invasive procedures or more complex procedures when deemed necessary.

Interventions

Injections are one intervention commonly used to treat tendonitis. While an injection of a steroid is very common in the treatment of acute tendonitis, we may consider a variety of other options that could include fenestrations, sclerotherapy, platelet-rich plasma, other ortho-biologics and novel treatments options. We will always weigh the risks and benefits of any treatment option with our patients to decide on the best treatment plan for each person.

Minimally Invasive Surgery

Minimally invasive surgery is a minor procedure that allows the physician to fix damaged tendons without an expensive trip to the operating room or admission to the hospital. The procedure is done in the outpatient clinic using only local anesthetics. This removes any risk of general anesthesia.

Our providers have been at the forefront of providing this service to our patients for more than a decade and are national experts in this area. The procedure takes place in our orthopaedic clinic and typically takes 60 minutes or less. The devices used for this procedure include the Tenex and Tenjet (Hydrocision) devices. The outcome and safety of these procedures is high and patients are able to find relief from chronic nagging injuries without a larger more invasive procedure.

 

For additional information or to set up an appointment, call 919-966-5760.