Do you have a really annoying pain in your elbow that just won’t go away? Does it flare up when you’re at the gym, carrying something, or just using your hands in general? As a chiropractor, I help many patients suffering from similar symptoms. You may be suffering from lateral epicondylitis, or more commonly known as tennis elbow.
Many of the muscles in our forearm that control hand movement actually start from our elbow via tendons. Tennis elbow is a condition where the tendons of the muscles that are responsible for extending our wrist become irritated. This in turn causes a pain which is often felt on the outside of our forearm, right near the elbow joint.
Despite its name, you can suffer from tennis elbow without ever playing the sport. Like any form of tendinopathy, it usually develops from overuse of the muscles. This could be from any activities that involve repetitive gripping movements of the wrist. For example, gripping the bars while weight training, holding the groceries, or even repetitive lifting/using tools in construction work.
Tennis elbow can be managed conservatively by a trained health professional such as a chiropractor or physiotherapist. A typical initial appointment would include:
- The practitioner taking a detailed history of your symptoms to help determine why you have this condition.
- Conducting a physical examination using specific tests to diagnose your condition.
- Treating your condition using a variety of techniques such as; soft tissue work, chiropractic adjustments and joint mobilisations, stretching and strengthening of targeted muscles.
- Education on the condition and how you can help your recovery (ice, use of straps, load management etc) and a specific individualised home exercise program.
The recovery time of tennis elbow can vary greatly depending on the extent of the injury and external factors. This is why it’s important to be properly assessed by a health professional to ensure further damage does not occur.
If this sounds like you, or you would like more information on this condition. Feel free to contact me!
