Sprained ankles and wrists, arthritic knees and hips and torn rotator cuffs all have one thing in common: They result in joint pain.

Tendonitis is an inflammation of a tendon—the tough cord of tissue that connects muscles to bones. Tendonitis can affect any tendon, but is most commonly seen in the wrist and fingers.

Tendonitis is your body's way of telling you, "Enough! You're putting too much stress on this muscle and joint."

If you've sprained your ankle, you know what pain is. But maybe that "sprain" was a "strain" or possibly even a "break." The amount of pain in each case can be virtually equal.

It might not make much of a storyline on a TV medical drama, but ankle sprains are one of the most common reasons for an emergency room visit.

When you sprain an ankle, one or more ligaments on the outside of your ankle become stretched or torn.