Ask The Expert
By now you’re probably well absorbed in the latest happenings of the Summer Olympics. Did you catch Jack Sock and Bethanie Mattek-Sands taking gold in Mixed Doubles?! Tennis has a rich history in the Olympics and is an extremely popular sport around the world. One common injury cited among tennis players is tennis elbow, or lateral epicondylitis. Tennis elbow is pain on the ‘outside’ of the elbow that can be felt when pressure is placed on the arm, or when a person resists wrist extension {i.e. squeezing, hand shaking, lift, etc.}.
Tennis elbow occurs when the muscles in the arm, forearm, and wrist are overused. The compounding result of the overuse is elbow pain and complaints of decreasing grip-strength {i.e. trouble opening a jar}. Repetitive wrist extension and gripping, a movement common in tennis – hence the name, can cause overloading and overuse of the tendons associated with wrist extension. This can lead to degeneration or failed healing of the extensor tendons. These tendons attach to the outside of the elbow, where the pain is felt.
Although 40-50% of tennis players are diagnosed with tennis elbow, tennis players only account for about 5% of all people affected by lateral epicondylitis. 15% of people who work in industries that require repetitive hand use suffer from lateral epicondylitis. This condition can vary from a mild irritation to debilitating in which people cannot perform activities of daily living or work tasks.
If your symptoms do not resolve, you should seek treatment from a physical therapist. Your problem may stem from an irritated nerve in the neck. Your elbow pain may also be compensation for a dysfunctional shoulder or wrist. A dysfunctional neck is often implicated when a person has pain in both elbows. Physical therapy can help by using modalities and manual therapy to decrease the inflammation to the tendon and improve healing. It also helps in identifying and correcting dysfunctional movements that could be the underlying cause of the elbow pain. Physical therapy provides guided exercises to improve the flexibility and strength of the wrist extensors and prevent recurrence of the problem.