Bursitis Symptoms

  • Acute: Pain; decreased range of motion; local tenderness on palpation; swelling and redness is visualized

if the bursa is superficial (e.g. olecranon and prepatellar).

  • Chronic: Thickened bursa wall; formation of adhesion, calcareous deposits, muscle atrophy from not

using it; various degrees of pain, tenderness, swelling, muscle weakness; typically, the range of motion is

quite decreased.

  • Shoulder: Bicipital tendinitis: tenderness over the bicipital groove and pain with elbow flexion; Subacromial bursitis: pain and tenderness locally and pain with all movements, especially rotation; Supraspinatus tendinitis: no rotational pain but pain when abduction reaches 40 degrees.