Tennis Elbow,(Lateral Epicondylitis) is one of the most common injuries for tennis players. The term is often used for RSI elbow injuries in people who don't play tennis, but what is it and what can you do to prevent and help it?
Symptoms.
The main symptoms of Tennis Elbow are pain and inflammation. The pain is mainly in the outer elbow where the bone cap is. This bone point is where the elbow bone connects to the tendons in the lower and upper arm, so the pain is likely to radiate down the arm or up the arm through the tendons from the elbow. Pain will be in the elbow but also in the arm and possibly the hand as well.
The symptoms worsen when certain actions are carried out, gripping, lifting, shaking hands, making a fist or straightening your hand and wrist.
Why Tennis Elbow?
Tennis Elbow is a repetitive strain injury, a form of tendonitis, where repeating actions cause inflammation. Anyone can get Tennis Elbow, not just tennis players, as it is caused by gripping, especially with the thumb and first two fingers, so the action of gripping and swinging the tennis racket is why tennis is a common cause of the injury that it gets its name from. Other racquet sport such as squash or badminton can cause it of course, as well as fencing and weights, where the same digits are used for grip.
Prevention.
Proper warm ups and stretches are vital to prevent tennis elbow and any sports and RSI injuries. Taking breaks and not repeating the same actions endlessly are also important. Use of the correct size and weight of racquet or equipment in sport is important and professional advice is best for that.
Treatment.
It is important to treat the injury as soon as it is noticed, rather than trying to continue as normal and compounding the problem. Trying to continue with the injury can lead to lasting damage, which could even end a sporting career.
Rest is what is needed, and use of ice every few hours to help reduce swelling. anti-inflammatory medicine may also be taken, such as Ibuprofen or Naproxen. A brace can be worn to assist in healing.
If the injury is caused by tennis or other sport, then sports physiotherapy is vital to prevent permanent damage and recurring problems. The physiotherapist will do a biomechanical assessment and correction to improve position and reduce muscular impact and trauma, they will also manipulate the injury to encourage it to settle down, as well as working to strengthen the muscles around it and probably also prescribe exercises to ease the injury and strengthen the supporting and surrounding muscles. The exercises are vital to recovery.
In rare cases, surgery is needed to remove sections of tendon that won't heal, but if you seek sports physiotherapy early on and rest the injury rather than trying to ignore it and continue as normal, it should heal.
Symptoms.
The main symptoms of Tennis Elbow are pain and inflammation. The pain is mainly in the outer elbow where the bone cap is. This bone point is where the elbow bone connects to the tendons in the lower and upper arm, so the pain is likely to radiate down the arm or up the arm through the tendons from the elbow. Pain will be in the elbow but also in the arm and possibly the hand as well.
The symptoms worsen when certain actions are carried out, gripping, lifting, shaking hands, making a fist or straightening your hand and wrist.
Why Tennis Elbow?
Tennis Elbow is a repetitive strain injury, a form of tendonitis, where repeating actions cause inflammation. Anyone can get Tennis Elbow, not just tennis players, as it is caused by gripping, especially with the thumb and first two fingers, so the action of gripping and swinging the tennis racket is why tennis is a common cause of the injury that it gets its name from. Other racquet sport such as squash or badminton can cause it of course, as well as fencing and weights, where the same digits are used for grip.
Prevention.
Proper warm ups and stretches are vital to prevent tennis elbow and any sports and RSI injuries. Taking breaks and not repeating the same actions endlessly are also important. Use of the correct size and weight of racquet or equipment in sport is important and professional advice is best for that.
Treatment.
It is important to treat the injury as soon as it is noticed, rather than trying to continue as normal and compounding the problem. Trying to continue with the injury can lead to lasting damage, which could even end a sporting career.
Rest is what is needed, and use of ice every few hours to help reduce swelling. anti-inflammatory medicine may also be taken, such as Ibuprofen or Naproxen. A brace can be worn to assist in healing.
If the injury is caused by tennis or other sport, then sports physiotherapy is vital to prevent permanent damage and recurring problems. The physiotherapist will do a biomechanical assessment and correction to improve position and reduce muscular impact and trauma, they will also manipulate the injury to encourage it to settle down, as well as working to strengthen the muscles around it and probably also prescribe exercises to ease the injury and strengthen the supporting and surrounding muscles. The exercises are vital to recovery.
In rare cases, surgery is needed to remove sections of tendon that won't heal, but if you seek sports physiotherapy early on and rest the injury rather than trying to ignore it and continue as normal, it should heal.