Tennis Elbow: The Real Cause of Tennis Elbow
Tennis elbow is one condition that many tennis players end up with after several years of practicing this sport. Still people who do not play tennis at all can also suffer from it. The formal name encountered for this condition in medical books is lateral epicondylitis which translates into popular language as the inflammation of the outside elbow bone. Many doctors consider that this condition is rather a problem triggered by middle age than by tennis playing or excessive use of the elbow. So, it seems, there are no specific pieces of evidence to support that tennis is the real cause of this problem. Yet, the fact that it is pretty common among tennis players has brought the name and the reputation.
If you are not sure as to whether you may have this condition, the symptoms to be identified are as follows. First of all, tennis elbow causes pain in the outer part of the elbow and the appearance of a tender point in the upper part of the elbow bone. Moreover, when one turns the wrist or lifts an object the pain can extend not only to the elbow but to the wrist joint too. Last but not least, another often noticed manifestation is the elbow and wrist stiffness after lack of movement over the night.
If you need to be diagnosed, then going to the doctor would be a smart thing. The most common tests for the identification of tennis elbow is radiography and MRI. Apparently, surgery does not fix the problem as the radiographies are not always relevant in determining the need for surgery or not. However treatments do exist and they have brought improvement in the case of many tennis elbow patients. Among the many options for treatment to be resorted to we can mention the use of anti-inflammatory drugs, the application of heat or ice and the wearing of a special elbow strap to make sure that strain on the elbow will be reduced.
The strap would most likely work as a prevention method as by wearing it you would avoid your elbow receiving even more damage than it has already suffered. Other options would include injecting cortisone locally to reduce the pain, using splints meant to keep your forearm and elbow in one position for two or three weeks, ultrasound that would increase blood circulation in the elbow area, acupuncture and several others.