The condition of tennis elbow (lateral epicondyle tendinopathy) occurs when certain tendons in the elbows get irritated by repetitive wrist and arm activity. Like the name suggests, it can be caused by playing tennis (think of hitting a back-hand swing, you can feel the muscles on that side of your forearm contract!), but also by any work-related movements that involve extensive use of the wrist, hand, and forearms. This condition can very likely heal with adequate rest and load management, but it can also have the potential to persist for months or even years. With this condition, the tendons that connect muscles to bone can cause pain and weakness with use. A weak elbow connection becomes a significant problem, affecting lifting, gripping, and twisting movements of the hand, wrist, and forearm.

Symptoms

The outside of your elbow is painful and tender when you have a tennis elbow. You may also be experiencing pain under your arm or even radiating to the hand. Tennis elbow can affect you in mild or severe ways, depending on how your elbow is used, severity of irritation, and how long you’ve already been living with this condition!

A common symptom is that you will likely experience the pain only when you use the wrist and hand. They can also make your wrist pain worse with extended wrists and gripping.

Tennis elbow can cause the following symptoms:

• • A stiff elbow, wrist, or forearm

• • Mild swelling in the tendons connecting towards the elbow

• • Sore forearm muscles

• • Weak grip strength

• • Difficulty with lifting, carrying, or twisting (opening a jar) movements

Home Management

Approximately 90% of tennis elbow sufferers can successfully treat themselves at home or with conservative remedies like physical therapy.

These home remedies can be helpful for mild cases of tennis elbow:

Rest and load management

Reduce frequency of activities that require a lot of forearm movement during the onset of tennis elbow inflammation. In some cases, your doctor may suggest wearing a brace to assist with load management at the location of irritation.

If your elbows and forearms are still painful, apply ice packs for 15 minutes at a time for the first 2-3 days. You can also attempt alternating between cold and hot therapy for improved blood flow as well which can improve the stiffness in the elbow, forearm, and hand.

Exercise – Strengthening and Stretches

Exercises are a great way to build strength, improve function, and manage symptoms. With this condition, day-to-day tasks are likely going to become difficult and painful; even things like lifting a coffee cup can be tough! For example, isometric strengthening exercises are extremely beneficial in helping manage pain symptoms but also provide an adequate amount of loading for the tendons and muscles to adapt to and build strength. Give this exercises a try if you are experiencing this issue:

• • Isometric wrist extension drill

1. 1. Rest elbow and top half of the forearm at the edge of a table, with your wrist and hand hanging off
   2. Make a soft fist and hold it at neutral position (wrist and hand straight)
   3. With your other hand open, push onto the fist until you experience a gentle contraction and/or slight pain. Please note that experiencing a small amount of pain is okay!
   4. Hold for 15 seconds and relax. Repeat for 8-10x for 2-3 sets per day.

Using a brace

If you are finding difficulty spending time to rest and recover from this condition, purchasing a brace is a good way to help manage symptoms throughout the work day. A tennis elbow brace is a strap that wraps around your forearm, positioned slightly below the site of insertion of the muscles in your forearm. This allows the “pulling” force to be dispersed from the tendinous insertion site, and therefore reduces the amount of pain you may experience with use of the wrist and forearms. However, please note that using a brace will likely only be a method to manage symptoms, and may not necessarily progress or heal the condition.

Conclusion

Tennis elbow, aka lateral epicondyle tendinopathy, can certainly be a difficult condition to overcome. It can cause pain, stiffness, and weakness that can make it difficult to do day-to-day tasks. However, you won’t need to live with this forever! Have a go with some of the pain management strategies and exercises we suggested. If you require further input from a physiotherapist or kinesiologist lens, don’t be afraid to reach out to us to inquire!