Peroneal tendinopathy is an uncommon problem with the tendons on the lateral side of the ankle joint. The problem almost always happens in runners where the strains on these tendons are therefore a lot higher. There are 2 peroneal muscles on the lateral side of the leg whose tendons move across the outside of the ankle joint with one tendon attaching on the lateral side of the foot at the base of the fifth metatarsal. The other tendon passes underneath the foot to attach to an region close to the center of the arch of the foot. The peroneal muscles have many different functions, but a principal one is to prevent the ankle joint rolling outwards and ending up with a sprained ankle. As they work hard during that task, the stress on the tendons can be too much for the tissue to tolerate and they are prone to peroneal tendonitis.
Commonly the tendonitis starts off with pain either above or just beneath the outside ankle bone with or without some puffiness. In some the inflammation occurs later. With continued exercise the pains becomes more persistent and progressively worse. A typical finding in those with peroneal tendonitis is a decreased supination resistance. This means it's easy for the ankle to supinate or roll laterally. This will cause the peroneal tendons to be very active, so if you then combine it with higher level of athletic activity, then the tendon is at high risk for an overuse injury.
The treatment of Peroneal Tendinopathy almost always begins with decreasing the load by lessening physical activity levels and also the use of footwear wedging or foot orthoses to pronate or tip the foot inwards so the muscle doesn't have to work as hard. Ice and anti-inflammatory medicines could also help decrease the pain and inflammation. Over the medium to long term raising stress by the way of exercise ought to be put on the tendon in order that it can get accustomed to the strains placed on it. In a few situations, surgery is indicated.