Has your doctor just told you that you have bursitis in your knee, ankle, elbow, shoulder or hip?
You are likely to have many questions about the treatment and healing time for different types of bursitis.
As a diagnostic radiographer, I rely on my professional knowledge and research in medical publications to address the most common questions about bursitis.
Enjoy reading and feel free to ask questions in the comments or share your own experience.🙏
Last updated: March, 2025. Written by Juliet Semakula, a diagnostic radiographer.
Summary: Bursitis are usually treated at home and should go away in a few weeks or a few months. These are common and not serious although often painful, the main line of treatment is to calm the inflammation to the joints where bursitis is located.
▶️What is bursitis and what causes it?
A bursitis is when the fluid-filled sacs (bursa) that cushion the joints become painful and swollen (inflamed)
These can affect any joint but the five most common are:
♦️Shoulder (subacromial-deltoid bursitis)
♦️Knee: (Prepatellar bursitis): this means that there is swelling behind the knee and near the three tendons of your hamstrings
♦️Elbow (Olecranon bursitis): can develop from an injury or from consistently applying pressure on your elbow. You might notice inflammation between the bones and skin on your elbow.
♦️Hip (Trochanteric bursitis): This type of bursitis is usually caused by surgery, injury, arthritis, extreme use, and abnormalities of the spine.
♦️Ankle (Retrocalcaneal bursitis):This type of bursitis occurs on your Achilles tendon, which connects the lower half of your calf muscle to your heel. It could be caused by disease, injury, or shoes with stiff back support.
Image showing the different body parts which are normally affected by bursitis (image from William,2023)
Pain especially when you move the affected part of your body for example the knee, elbow, hip, and heel is among the most common musculoskeletal complaints of bursitis.
▶️What are the symptoms of bursitis in these joints?
Knee bursitis
🟠The clinical indications of septic prepatellar bursitis are swelling, pain, erythema, and warmth
🟠Pain with joint range of motion is atypical except for discomfort at extreme flexion, which compresses the inflamed bursa
McAfee,1988
Elbow bursitis:
🟠A non-tender fluctuant mass over the olecranon.
🟠Unilateral swelling over the proximal olecranon
🟠Tenderness on the elbow.
🟠Hyperaemia of the skin overlying the bursa as well as oedema extending into the forearm
🟠Severe effusion of the underlying elbow joint
Hip bursitis
🟠Lateral hip pain which may radiate to the buttock, groin, or low back.
You will feel more pain when walking uphill, stair climbing, and rising from a seated position.
🟠Tenderness over the lateral aspect of the greater trochanter.
Shbeeb,1996
Ankle (heal) bursitis
🟠Inflammation of the retrocalcaneal bursa can limit function and cause pain.
🟠 Pain anterior to the Achilles tendon and just superior to the calcaneus is the hallmark of retrocalcaneal bursitis.
🟠Pain may be provoked with dorsiflexion of the foot and on active resisted plantar flexion.
▶️What really causes bursitis and what can be mistaken for bursitis?
There are two main causes of bursitis on the joints that lead to inflammation.
1️⃣ If you have an injury such as a fall, surgery, arthritis and abnormalities on the joints.
2️⃣Joints being irritated by too much friction or pressure which is repetitive.
There are several occupations or sports that are associated with higher risk of bursitis.
🟤Carpentry
🟤Gardening and raking.
🟤Painting
🟤Poorly positioned joint or bone due to sours or arthritis.
🟤Scrubbing
🟤Sports like tennis, golf and baseball.
Bursitis is sometimes mistaken with other joint conditions such as arthritis, tendinitis, fracture, tendon or ligament injury, and nerve pathology.
Reason being most of these conditions cause pain to the joints, tendons and have similar symptoms.
However, bursitis issues usually last for a short term, it is unusual for bursa to create long time damage to the joint.
Also, germs such as bacteria can enter the burse causing inflammation is known as septic bursitis which is rare which can be treated by antibiotics.
Sometimes inflammatory diseases such as gout and arthritis can spread to the bursa causing bursitis.
▶️How long does it take for bursitis to heal?
The time it takes for bursitis to heal depends on factors like its location, severity, underlying cause, and treatment.
The truth is nobody can predict that, even with a full physio check-up. You just must be patient and try to follow your doctors’ instructions.
Here’s a breakdown on how bursitis can sometimes disappear without any specific treatment and never return:
| Phase | Estimated healing timeline |
| Pain decreases | A few days to weeks even with or without proper treatment. |
| Swelling decreases | Weeks to months |
| Complete healing | 1 to 6 months with appropriate treatment or more |
| If you have surgery for bursitis lesion | 🟤Elastic bandage for 2 days, followed by drain removal. 🟤Wound assessment, early functional aftercare without splint. 🟤Antibiotic therapy in septic bursitis for 2 weeks, 🟤PRICE scheme. 🟤Removal of stitches after 10-12 days.Saul,2017 |
| Recovery for hip bursitis | Can take 6 weeks to 12 weeks for you to start feeling better. |
| When to resume physical activity. | Physical activities should be resumed gradually, so the problem doesn’t recur. |
▶️How long can bursitis be treated (as quickly as possible)?
Management of bursitis is controversial, the most common methods used are non-surgical management.
There are various ways to treat this inflammation, depending on the cause and how it develops over time.
Here are some of the methods used.
The acronym P.R.I.C.E. can be used to remember an approach to treating muscle and joint injuries
Protect, Rest, ice, compression and elevate the injured area:
🟤Protection: this means you will be given a Splint, sling or knee pads to help protect your injury from pressure.
🟤You will be advised to rest especially for hip and ankle bursitis. This does not mean that you stop walking completely.
🟤You may be advised to apply an ice tube wrapped in a cloth to the affected area.
🟤You may be advised to apply a heating pad or a hot water bottle wrapped in a towel to the affected joint.
🟤If it is your knee or ankle affected you will be instructed to elevate your leg, this is helpful to keep the swelling down.
With the PRICE acronym you need to find the right balance between doing it and overdoing it, the aim is to avoid aggravated inflammation.
Medications such as anti-inflammatory drugs.
🟥Your doctor may provide you with pain killers to help with pain.
🟥You may be given an Injection such as corticosteroid which is associated with a significant decline in the duration of symptoms.
However, it was associated with a higher number of complications including bursal infection and skin atrophy (Kaur,2023)
🟥Antibiotics may be administered orally or intravenously.
🟥Therapy and oral NSAIDs.
🟥If symptoms persist, you may be given local glucocorticoid injection to your hip (shbeeb,1996)
Exercises, strengthening, stretching.
You might work with a physical therapist for a few weeks while you’re recovering from your bursa.
Your physical therapist will develop a treatment plan that’s customized for your unique symptoms or goals.
🟥Physiotherapy will help with manoeuvres that stretch the local Achilles tendon may aid in attenuating the symptoms for ankle bursitis.
🟥A physiotherapist will work with you to improve your movement and manage pain by stretching and massaging the hip muscles
🟥Help you prevent injuries and falls.
Comfortable shoes and activity modifications.
🟥Shoe wear modification to prevent irritation of the posterior heel by the shoe counter should be considered
🟥Activity modification or avoidance of aggravating activity that puts more stress to the joints such as running.
Infiltrations:
🟥when your symptoms are not improving as expected an aspiration is performed to rule out infection
🟥The more the fluid builds up in the bursa, the more it swells up, and the more painful it becomes.
🟥A doctor can puncture the bursa with a hollow needle (cannula) to draw out the excess fluid.
🟥Sometimes you will be given a corticosteroid injection in the bursa to help with the pain.
Surgery
There is hardly any research on when an inflamed bursa should be surgically removed, so there aren’t currently any general recommendations.
However, only when the bursa is also infected with bacteria then surgery is remanded.
Bursectomy is one surgical option, some severe bursitis for patients whose symptoms do not resolve with nonsurgical management (Wang,2000)
🟥Local anaesthesia beyond the lesion is given.
🟥Careful debridement.
🟥The lesion is identified, and the entire bursa is removed.
🟥Excision of contaminated skin, lavage, drain insertion is done.
🟥Then wound closure, elastic bandage, and splint applied.
An example of a traumatic lesion of the bursa olecranon.
Image showing a traumatic lesion of the bursa olecranon (Saul,2017)
▶️What happens if bursitis is left untreated?
If you do not get your bursitis treated, this can lead to the following:
🔵The longer you put pressure or additional stress on an injured bursa, the longer it’ll take to recover
🔵A permanent thickening or enlargement of the bursa, which can cause chronic inflammation and pain.
🔵Muscle atrophy: You may have a long term reduced use of joint which can lead to decreased physical activity and loss of surrounding muscle.
▶️Can you walk with bursitis?
There are no restrictions to walking with bursitis, remember walking could be a vital part of managing your bursitis symptoms.
However, you need to be careful and talk to your doctor before walking longer distances.
The main thing is to take it slow and listen to your body. If the pain gets too intense when walking, stop.
Choose supportive shoes and a soft and stable walking surface to minimize the chances of further injuries for ankle bursitis.
If at work and you cannot do certain movements, then it’s often more reasonable to stop for a few days or weeks, while the inflammation subsides.
Ideally you should be able to adapt the way you work or the pace at which you work so as not to awaken the bursitis.
Your doctor may give you a prescribed time off work if you need to.
▶️What can you do to prevent bursitis?
The best way to prevent bursitis is to avoid overusing the affected body part of your body.
🔵Learn the proper posture or technique for sports or work activities.
🔵Ease into new exercises or activities to avoid injury.
🔵Avoid sitting or kneeling too long. These positions put a lot of pressure on your joints.
🔵Use cushions and pads when you kneel or lean on your elbows.
🔵Take breaks if you’re doing a repetitive task.
🔵Maintain a healthy weight being overweight puts more pressure on your joints
🔵Clean any cuts on the joints to prevent infections.
We have come to the end of this article; hope I have answered some of your questions about bursitis. Wishing you a quick recovery!🙋
All references used below and any experience and questions, let’s meet in the comments section.
📚Sources:
Kaur IP, Mughal MS, Aslam F, Schram J, Bansal P. Non-surgical treatment of aseptic olecranon bursitis: A systematic review. Reumatol Clin (Engl Ed). 2023 Nov;19(9):482-487. doi: 10.1016/j.reumae.2023.05.004. PMID: 37945181.
Aaron DL, Patel A, Kayiaros S, Calfee R. Four common types of bursitis: diagnosis and management. J Am Acad Orthop Surg. 2011 Jun;19(6):359-67. doi: 10.5435/00124635-201106000-00006. PMID: 21628647.
McAfee JH, Smith DL. Olecranon and prepatellar bursitis. Diagnosis and treatment. West J Med. 1988 Nov;149(5):607-10. PMID: 3074561; PMCID: PMC1026560.
Wang JP, Granlund KF, Bozzette SA, Botte MJ, Fierer J. Bursal sporotrichosis: case report and review. Clin Infect Dis. 2000 Aug;31(2):615-6. doi: 10.1086/313983. PMID: 10987734.
Williams CH, Jamal Z, Sternard BT. Bursitis. [Updated 2023 Jul 24]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2025 Jan-. Available from:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/books/NBK513340/
Shbeeb MI, Matteson EL. Trochanteric bursitis (greater trochanter pain syndrome). Mayo Clin Proc. 1996 Jun;71(6):565-9. doi: 10.4065/71.6.565. PMID: 8642885.
Saul D, Dresing K. Behandlung der traumatisch eröffneten Bursa olecrani und der chronischen Bursitis olecrani [Treatment of traumatic lesions of the bursa olecrani and chronic bursitis olecrani]. Oper Orthop Traumatol. 2017 Jun;29(3):253-265. German. doi: 10.1007/s00064-017-0483-y. PMID: 28175943.
InformedHealth.org [Internet]. Cologne, Germany: Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG); 2006-. Bursitis: Learn More – How can bursitis be treated?