Bursitis is inflammation or irritation of a bursa sac. You he these sacs all over your body. They’re filled with fluid that eases rubbing and friction between tissues such as bones, muscles, tendons, and skin. Bursitis is common around major joints such as your shoulder, elbow, hip, or knee.
Bursitis in your knee may be caused by pressure on your joints over time. (Photo credit: E+ / Getty Images)
What Are Bursitis Causes and Risk Factors?Bursitis is common in adults, especially after age 40.
It’s usually caused by repeated pressure on an area or by using a joint too much. High-risk activities include gardening, raking, carpentry, shoveling, painting, scrubbing, playing tennis, golf, skiing, and throwing. You can also get bursitis by sitting or standing the wrong way for a long time at work or home, or by not stretching enough before you exercise. Sudden injury can sometimes cause bursitis.
As you age, your tendons aren’t able to handle stress as well. They’re less elastic and easier to tear.
If there’s a problem with the structure of a bone or joint (such as legs that are different lengths or arthritis in a joint), it can put more stress on a bursa, causing bursitis. Reactions to medications and stress or inflammation from other conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis, gout, psoriatic arthritis, or thyroid disorders, may also raise your risk.
An infection, especially with Staphylococcus aureus bacteria, can sometimes cause bursitis.
What Are the Types of Bursitis?Bursas are small sacs filled with fluid that help cushion your joints, bones, and muscles. Any bursa can become inflamed, but the most common places to he bursitis are in your shoulder, elbow, knee, hip, or foot.
Bursitis can happen suddenly, or it can be ongoing (chronic). When it comes on suddenly, it usually hurts to move your affected joint. With chronic bursitis, a bursa swells slowly, and you may or may not feel pain.
Sometimes, bursitis is caused by an infection. This is called septic bursitis, and it’s not as common. Your doctor will check to make sure you don’t he an infection.
Shoulder bursitis
Shoulder bursitis causes painful swelling in your shoulder that gets worse when you move it. This can be caused by an injury or bump. Some people’s shoulder bones are naturally shaped in a way that puts more pressure on the bursa. If your bones are shaped like this, you're more likely to get shoulder bursitis.