TENNIS ELBOW: Think you may have tennis elbow but you don’t even play tennis?
What is Tennis Elbow?
Lateral Epicondylagia (AKA Tennis Elbow) is a painful condition of the elbow that is caused by overuse. Gracie Ellis, One of our Musculoskeletal Physiotherapists has the following information just for you:
Causes:
Repetitive or unaccustomed activities involving the muscles of the wrist and forearms such as gripping, throwing and manoeuvring the arm under load are often the cause of this sports injury. This may involve tennis – but not always.
Local Anatomy:
There are many muscles in the forearm, all of which form two common tendons that attach on either side of the bony bumps of the elbow. This is why people with tennis elbow feel pain on the inside or outside of the elbow.
What does Tennis Elbow feel like?
Ache or pain on firm gripping with the hand and lifting objects – especially when your hand is in a rotated position with your palm pointing down (eg lifting up a chair from the back of the seat).
What you can do yourself:
Immediate treatment for an acute flare-up should involve icing regularly and some rest from the repetitive activity.
You should also refrain from gripping and lifting of heavy weights such as backpacks, eskys or cartons of beer for the initial period (;))
How we can help:
Request an assessment from a physiotherapist.
Getting the right treatment and advice early is the key with these presentations as they can linger and become a more substantive problem over time, and a simple treatment course can become far more complex.
Your physio will confirm your diagnosis and review your biomechanics that may have created the problem in the first place.
Treatment may include soft tissue massage, joint mobilisation, taping/support, and exercises.