Tennis Elbow Strap, Brace support for pain relief

Among the several pain sufferers we attend everyday at our clinics across cities in India; whether their elbow pain is recent or they have an old chronic Tennis elbow pain, one question that remains common – is about wearing an elbow support : Tennis Elbow Brace, strap or just an elbow sleeve.

Should you use a tennis elbow strap, tennis elbow clasp / brace or a tennis elbow sleeve?

Here is our answer — When you choose to strap, wrap, brace or use band on your elbow what you achieve is:

Pain relief    – Yes

Elbow Recovery – Slow

Suffering from tennis elbow pain can be debilitating. One of most popular pain relief items that people can purchase for elbow pain is a tennis elbow brace.

There are several other ways to get relief from pain due to Tennis elbow. You could read about treatment options for Tennis elbow here.

Why use tennis elbow brace, band or strap?

However, buying a tennis elbow brace, band, strap or sleeve seems to be the most popular option to aid treatment, recovery and pain relief for tennis elbow. In theory, the reasons for a brace being prescribed fall into two categories:

1. To immobilize your elbow, and/or
2. To ‘protect‘ you while your arm is active.

There are a number of different types available in the market and we look at how they work and which may be best for you.

Choosing the correct support for you will depend on how much you want to pay as well as the activities you may want to do. Tennis elbow braces come in three varieties; the elbow sleeve, tennis elbow strap and epicondylitis clasp.

A)  Tennis elbow Brace

1. Elbow sleeves are stocking-like braces worn over the entire elbow joint, covering some of the upper arm and forearm.
2. A tennis elbow brace or sleeve provides compression, support and warmth for the entire elbow whilst the strap is tightened around the upper forearm to work in the same way as a tennis elbow strap.
3. An elbow brace is not a cure, and works as a protection. It will allow you to do your daily necessities such as driving, eating, or holding your baby with less pain. It can prevent additional injury and irritation to a certain degree.
4. What works:
   • Tendons which are not acute or recent injuries respond well to heat (warmth is generated by the sleeve covering the elbow)
   • The sleeve also supports the whole joint so the sleeve is an excellent choice if you have multiple conditions in your arm involving the elbow joints and muscles around it, such as bicep tendonitis, golfer’s elbow, cubital tunnel syndrome,
   • These are usually light, inexpensive, and affordable.
5. What doesn’t work:
   • It is cumbersome to wear (though it is easy to follow the directions
   • elbow bursitis, etc
   • given on the pack) and tightening the forearm strap is less accurate than a separate strap.
   • Prolonged use will not allow muscles any mobility and result into loss of strength in the arm.
   • They may become too hot in summer or may be insufficient support if you are needed to perform pinching and gripping with the elbow.

B)  Sleeves for Tennis Elbow

1. These are simple strap which are wrapped around the forearm just below the elbow. Some have additional pressure pads.
2. A common mistake while putting on the tennis elbow strap is that people often put the strap over the painful spot. It needs to be wrapped around the forearm just below the most painful part of the elbow.
3. A tennis elbow strap applies compression to your upper forearm to protect the inflamed muscle tendon.
4. What works:
   • They are often inexpensive, easy to fit and the level of compression can be adjusted to suit.
   • They change the angle at which the tendon works at the elbow which changes the forces which are applied to the tendon attachment allowing the injured area time to recover.
5. What doesn’t work:
   • They may become uncomfortable with prolonged use. May slip or rotate once sweaty, compression is not precise.
   • They do not retain heat like a tennis elbow sleeve, aiding the recovery.

C)  Epicondylitis or Tennis Elbow clasp 

1. They consist of a plastic clasp or clip which fits around the arm, secured with a strap with a pressure point over the muscle a couple of cm below the point of pain on the elbow.
2. This elbow brace is mostly considered to be a medical supply.
3. What works:
   1. They can be applied precisely to the point required if fitted accurately. This means high accuracy for pain relief.
   2. This brace is excellent for high performance athletes to be able to continue training while recovering from a tennis elbow condition
4. What doesn’t work:
   1. They are expensive and sometimes difficult to get
   2. It may be difficult to fit it in the right place and may take a long time to learn to wear/fit them properly.

Why is physiotherapy important along with using the brace and medication, if any?

Tennis elbow is an overuse and muscle strain injury. Repetitive Strain Injury like Tennis Elbow may need immobilization with an objective to:

• Keep your arm still so it can heal and
• Support and ‘protect’ your arm while it is active.

Unfortunately it doesn’t work that way.

Common knowledge says that the support helps you from further injury. You may use brace or sleeve for some time to

• allow rest to your elbow when very painful
• protect elbow while using the arm

But your muscles still have to work and should continue to move – so that they can maintain, recover and regain the strength.

Tennis Elbow Braces only provide the benefit of temporary structural support.

Using a Tennis Elbow Brace may give temporary relief, but it is likely that as soon as you start doing your normal activity, the pain will come back.

Prolonged use of support leaves even the unaffected surrounding muscles at the elbow to go weaker and that may mean higher chance of repeated injury. On the contrary the supporting muscles and shoulder should be re-trained to take over the load of the elbow and support its functioning.

Exercises, stretches and physiotherapy modalities can help you reduce this type of pain and prevent it from coming back in the long run.  Physiotherapy aims to achieve a:

• Reduction of elbow pain.
• Facilitation of tissue repair.
• Restoration of the normal joint range of motion and function.
• Restoration of normal muscle length, strength and movement patterns.
• Normalisation of your upper limb neurodynamics.

Physiotherapy treatment for tennis elbow has been shown to be effective in the short and long-term management of tennis elbow. (Read to know more about treatment of Tennis elbow with Physiotherapy.)

Related Reading:

Tennis elbow: Cause, Symptoms and Cure

Treatment for Tennis elbow : Home care and Physiotherapy

Call us at +9199209 91584 to fix an appointment with a ReLiva Physiotherapist in your area and work towards your recovery.