Tennis elbow, a condition medically referred to as lateral epicondylitis is much more common that you may think. Associated with the sport of Tennis, it can occur to anyone playing or not playing Tennis. This post gives you a brief overview of what you may want to know about Tennis Elbow and its treatment.
Tennis Elbow Overview I Symptoms I Causes I Pain relief I Treatment I Prevention
What is Tennis Elbow ?
Tennis elbow is a condition that causes pain around the outside of the elbow. Clinically known as lateral epicondylitis, Tennis elbow is a painful condition that occurs when tendons in your elbow are overloaded, usually by repetitive movements of forearm, arm or wrist. Despite the name, athletes are not the only people who suffer but also people with repetitive hand movements such as plumbers, carpenters, butchers or house maids are the ones who commonly suffer from tennis elbow.
What are the symptoms of Tennis Elbow?
The pain of tennis elbow can range from mild discomfort while using your elbow, to severe pain that can be felt when your elbow is still.
If you have tennis elbow, you will usually experience:
- Pain, tenderness and swelling around the elbow.
- Pain flows right from the bony bump of the elbow into the forearm or wrist.
- Pain or burning sensation on the outer part of the elbow.
- Shooting or intense pain especially when moving the arm particularly for twisting
- Trouble moving the wrist normally and stretching the hand.
- Pain when picking things up, gripping objects, typing on a computer and putting pressure on the lower arms in other ways.
Usually symptoms of tennis elbow will develop slowly as more micro tears develop in the elbow’s tendon. At first, you might not notice this process happening, but at some point you’ll feel tenderness, especially when repeatedly moving the elbow.
Pain and weakness may result in difficulty in performing movements or activities such as:
- Holding a coffee mug
- Turning the door knob
- Shaking hands or gripping an objects
Related Reading: All about Golfer’s Elbow
What are the Causes of Tennis Elbow?
The elbow joint is surrounded by muscles that move your elbow, wrist and fingers. The tendons in your elbow join the bones and muscles together, and control the muscles of your forearm.
Tennis elbow is usually caused by overusing the muscles attached to your elbow and used to straighten your wrist. If the muscles and tendons are strained, tiny tears and inflammation can develop near the bony lump (the lateral epicondyle) on the outside of your elbow.
Tennis elbow is an overuse and muscle strain injury and you could cause Tennis elbow by any or all of the following:
- Overuse : repeated use of muscles in your forearm that you use to straighten and raise your hand or wrist
- Activities : Certain professions require consistent use of the upper arms like athletes, personal trainers, gardeners, painters, auto workers, landscapers, carpenters, cooks or butchers and plumbers etc – entail using the same set of muscles and tendons in the elbow, forearm and wrist over and over again could gradually build-up to cause Tennis elbow.
- Age : As you age the strength of the muscles reduces ), tissue forming them becomes degenerated and worn-down over time (unless maintained with regular exercises) putting you at higher risk to be damaged and inflamed at slightest of overuse or injury.
- Injury : An injury to a tendon namely extensor carpi radialis brevis (or the ECRB) could result in Tennis elbow. The ECRB tendon controls movement of the wrists when the elbow is straight. If the elbow is straightened and bent over and over again, the tendon can become overworked. This is why tennis elbow is really a form of tendonitis.
- Athletes : Tennis elbow, as the name suggests, is sometimes caused by playing tennis. But it is most common in sports people who use their elbows in the same manner day after day, for many weeks or months on end. For athletes, it often affects people who don’t rest enough between workouts.
- Even if your job doesn’t require much use of your elbows or arms, if you spend a lot of time typing on the computer, knitting, cooking, painting or playing an instrument, it’s still possible to suffer from tennis elbow.
Who is affected by tennis elbow?
Tennis elbow is a common musculoskeletal condition. It’s estimated that as many as one in three people have tennis elbow at any given time.
The condition usually affects adults and is more common in people who are 40-60 years of age. Men and women are equally affected.
What are the complications related with Tennis Elbow?
Once Tennis elbow sets in, it significantly limits the movement of arm and may also entail few other complications including:
- Infection, rarely but possible.
- Nerve and blood vessel damage
- Possible prolonged rehabilitation
- Loss of strength due to low usage
- Loss of flexibility
- The need for surgery
What are the Treatment options for Tennis Elbow?
Tennis elbow is a self-limiting condition, which means it will eventually get better without treatment. However, there are treatments that can be used to improve your symptoms and speed up your recovery.
- Measures for immediate pain relief
- Rest : It is important to stop using the injured arm and give it some rest
- RICE : Holding a cold compress, such as a bag of frozen peas wrapped in a towel, against your elbow for a few minutes several times a day can help ease the pain. Read more to know about RICE protocol.
- Elbow Support : Using a brace, band or strap to support the elbow may help alleviate the pain to a large extent. But it is important to identify the right size and type for your elbow. Read more about using braces and band for treating Tennis elbow
If pain persists then you may look at the next line of treatment. Read more about treating Tennis Elbow.
- Physiotherapy is recommended in more severe and persistent cases. Massaging and manipulating the affected area may help relieve the pain and stiffness, and improve the range of movement in your arm. Read more about Physiotherapy best treatment for pain relief. [1]
- Surgery may be used as a last resort to remove the damaged part of the tendon.
What can be done to prevent Tennis Elbow?
It’s not always easy to avoid getting tennis elbow, especially if you have had it before. Not putting too much stress on the muscles and tendons surrounding your elbow will help prevent the condition getting worse.
If your tennis elbow is caused by an activity that involves placing repeated strain on your elbow joint, such as tennis, try changing your technique to alleviate the problem.
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Scientific References:
[1] Lateral elbow tendinopathy: Evidence of physiotherapy management, World J Orthop. 2016 Aug 18; 7(8): 463–466. Published online 2016 Aug 18. doi: 10.5312/wjo.v7.i8.463, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4990766/
Related Reading:
Treatment options for Tennis Elbow
Tennis Elbow Strap, Brace support for pain relief
At ReLiva, we want you to get back to participating in the activities you enjoy as fast as possible. Get relief. Call +91 99209 91584 to speak to us today so we can connect you with a physiotherapist near you.
