What Is The Reason For Elbow Pain?
The elbow is the joint between your arm and your forearm. There are three bones that meet at the elbow; the humerus, radius, and ulna. These bones form a hinge-like structure that allows us to bend our hand towards our face (flexion) or move it away from our face (extension). The two main ligaments which cross the elbow joint are known as collateral ligaments. These provide stability to the elbow joint and prevent excessive movement of the joint.
There are a number of different injuries or conditions that can affect this area of your arm. One is tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis), which affects part of your muscle up near the shoulder (the bicep) and down your forearm (the tendons that run along the outside of the elbow). The tennis elbow, or lateral epicondylitis, will cause pain to spread from your elbow right into your wrist. You can also get called golfer's elbow too, which is basically the same thing but on the other side (the inside) of your arm. This pain spreads down into your forearm and into your hand.
Another common elbow injury is osteoarthritis, which if you're over the age of 40 you can develop as a result of wear and tear on your joint. This causes pain, swelling and stiffness in the joint. Osteoarthritis is most commonly seen in older patients who have been found to have a higher Body Mass Index (BMI) and have done a lot of heavy lifting over the course of their lives.
There are many other reasons why you might get elbow pain but if it is an injury that has been sustained during your day-to-day life then it may be worth checking out some elbow pain treatment options to see what works for you, such as the
Fix My Elbow programme.
Causes of pain on the elbow
The majority of elbow pain is caused by strained or inflamed soft tissues such as tendons or ligaments. Arthritis usually involves joints feeling painful and swollen. Stiffness can come from a problem with the elbow joint itself or the muscles surrounding the joint. Sometimes elbow pain can be the result of a medical condition like arthritis or scar tissue forming after a trauma. The elbow may sometimes lock in a fixed position which is usually short-lived but may be due to a loose bit of bone or cartilage that needs to be corrected.
What should I know about elbow pain?
Many people suffer from elbow pain. An elbow condition can occur in one or many ways - overuse and sports injuries create many different elbow problems. Treatment of the elbow disorder depends upon the underlying cause.
What Are The Symptoms Of Elbow Pain?
As is the case with most injuries, elbow pain will cause a whole range of different symptoms in patients depending on what injury has been sustained. Some common symptoms include swelling at the elbow, sharp pains when moving your arm or hand, dull aches which last for an extended period of time and a loss of strength in the muscle.
How Do You Get Rid Of Elbow Pain?
Tennis elbow and golfer's elbow are very similar injuries in terms of how they should be treated.
The best way to get rid of your elbow pain is through a combination of pain-relief massage, mobility stretches and strength building exercises (such as eccentric exercises).
You should aim to include rest days for the arm during this process to allow the elbow pain to calm down and the tendon to recover. This will help the inflammation, which is often a leading cause of pain in elbow injuries, to go down and you should notice a significant improvement in the symptoms.
You may also want to try some additional support in the form of a splint or brace for your elbow, but the biggest impact will be achieved by improving the strength in your arm by engaging in simple exercises that target the area. You can do this by using weights at home or the gym and following the Fix My Elbow protocol.
As with most injuries, it's important to ensure you catch the problem early on so that you don't end up with a more severe injury down the line.
Do I Have Tennis Elbow or Golfers Elbow?
Tennis elbow and golf elbow are two types of tendonitis. They usually result as a result of vibrations or repetitive stresses.
Tennis elbow affects the muscles in your upper arm, which are known as the extensor muscles. These are located on the outer side of your forearm and when you contract them this causes your hand to flex or bend forward.
Golfer's elbow is a very similar injury but it affects different muscles. Golfer's elbow is most commonly caused by repetitive injury. This is when you use the same muscles over and over again, which leads to damage in the tendons on your forearm that flex your wrist or bend your hand back.
How Long Does Elbow Tendonitis Take To Heal?
Elbow tendonitis is an inflammation of your tendons, which are the thick fibrous cords that link muscle to bone. Tendons usually bear weight and transfer force between muscles and bones during movement.
When you sustain elbow tendonitis it's likely that you will notice a sharp pain on one side of your elbow when moving your arm. This usually occurs during physical activity and you might also experience a restricted range of motion.
By following a physiotherapy designed programme such as Fix My Elbow, in most cases, the symptoms and pain will begin to improve immediately, but to heal completely takes a number of weeks. The Fix My Elbow programme is designed to be completed over 12 weeks.
What Is The Best Treatment For Elbow Pain?
Physiotherapy is recommended for tennis elbow.
A Physiotherapist is a healthcare professional who uses various strategies to restore movement of the affected area in your body. A physiotherapist uses manual therapeutic techniques for alleviating pain and stiffness as well as promoting good blood flow.
They can demonstrate exercises to you to keep your arm mobile and to build muscle in your arms. Fix My Elbow is designed and instructed by James Luccock, an advanced musculoskeletal physiotherapist with specialist knowledge in the rehabilitation and healthcare of chronic pain, muscle pain and biomechanics, in particular for the elbow.
