I had some relentless elbow pain after going to the driving range a few times, and basically "wacking the heck" out of the ball. The pain was vague, hard to pinpoint, and way worse upon full elbow flexion. After 6 months of this, I finally figured out that it was simply "Tennis Elbow", a condition caused by overuse of arm and forearm muscles that results in elbow pain. You don't have to play tennis to get this, but the term came into use because it can be a significant problem for some tennis players.
What Are the Symptoms of Tennis Elbow?
Symptoms of tennis elbow include: (WebMD.com)
- Pain slowly increasing around the outside of the elbow. Less often, pain may develop suddenly.
- Pain is worse when shaking hands or squeezing objects.
- Pain is made worse by stabilizing or moving the wrist with force. Examples include lifting, using tools, opening jars, or even handling simple utensils such as a toothbrush or knife and fork.
I seem to have found some relief by digging my fingers in to the muscles and outer elbow ligament, and moving the elbow through all ranges of motion. I also started doing forearm supination (external rotation) movements with weights, but that does not seem to have helped at all.
Tennis elbow usually is successfully treated by moist heat and rest, and only rarely requires surgery. The "rest" part is the hardest part for me, as I am very active. I did put a tennis elbow forearm brace around it, made by Mueller, found at most CVS and Walgreen's. That actually does seem to have brought some relief, especially if worn during strenuous activity.
Hopefully, I can heal this before 2010.
Regards,
Dr. A.
