Tennis Elbow

Tennis elbow is a condition affecting the lateral tendons of the elbow, causing symptoms of lateral elbow pain and weakness. It is often caused by repetitive movements of the arm, either from typing or manual work. At our Sydney hand therapy clinic, we manage tennis elbow through exercises, splinting, bracing, and taping to relieve elbow pain and restore function.

Causes and Risk Factors of Tennis Elbow

The usual causes of tennis elbow are repetitive stress to the forearm muscles and tendons, leading to small tears in the tendons that attach to the lateral epicondyle, the bony bump on the outside of the elbow. Activities most often associated with the repetitive gripping or extending at the wrist, such as tennis, painting, or use of any tools, will increase your risk for developing tennis elbow. While this condition is usually common to tennis players, it occurs among people in other occupations as well as in hobbies.

Causes and risk factors include the following:

• Repetitive motion: Stress occurs on the tendons by repeatedly gripping, lifting, or bending of the wrist.
• Poor technique: wrong form during physical activities increase the chances of developing injury.
• Age: Tennis elbow occurs commonly among individuals between 30-50 years of age.
• Occupation: Activities that keep the arm and wrist in the same position for long periods of time can bring about tennis elbow, such as carpentry.

Symptoms of Tennis Elbow Common symptoms include:

• Pain and tenderness on the outer elbow, possibly radiating into the forearm. Weakness in grip strength, making it hard to hold or lift things.
• Pain during certain movements, such as twisting or extending the wrist. Difficulty with activities of daily living, such as opening jars or shaking hands.

Symptoms may progress with continued activity and can become chronic if treatment is late.

Conservative Treatment of Tennis Elbow

1. The Hand Physiotherapy for Tennis Elbow

The treatment programs developed by our hand therapy specialists are based on individualised attention to achieve the goals of pain reduction, restoration of function, and strength enhancement. These include:

1. Manual therapy: Soft tissue mobilisation and myofascial release techniques minimize pain and inflammation. Release of tightness in the forearm muscles and improvement in blood flow are some other benefits of manual therapy, thereby aiding in the healing process and relieving tension on the affected tendons.
2. Strengthening exercises: A set of strengthening and stretching exercises are done to regain mobility with minimal pain. Exercises target the forearm and wrist muscles to re-establish strength that would prevent re-injury.
3. Splinting, Bracing, and Taping for Tennis Elbow

One is usually advised to wear a wrist splint or an elbow brace in an attempt to ease tension on the tendons and, consequently reduce pain. The nature of support will be guided by which part tends to hurt worst:

Elbow Braces: Most are designed to reduce the pull on the elbow joint’s tendons by limiting forearm rotation. You may wear an elbow brace during activity to reduce the strain on the tendon and alleviate pain from repetitive motions.

Wrist splints: A wrist splint will be used if the pain emanates from the wrist to limit movements of the wrist, hence resting the tendons in the forearm and thus allowing them to heal. Wearing a wrist splint during daytime or nighttime prevents further strain.

Taping: Our hand therapists also use kinesiology taping to support the muscles and tendons without limiting motion. The taping decreases tension in the injured portion of the elbow and enhances circulation for appropriate healing during the recovery process. The combination of these treatments, combined with specific exercises, stabilises the elbow by reducing pain and prevents further injury.

3. Activity Modification and Ergonomic Adjustments

Activity modification is a cornerstone of tennis elbow management. Our hand therapy specialists will guide you through modifications to daily activities that decrease stress to the elbow and forearm, including:

• Ergonomic modifications: The height of the working surface, mouse pad, or keyboard is modified to reduce strain on the forearm muscles of a desk worker to alleviate the condition and not aggravate it.
• Rest and breaks: Intermittent resting during a long period of continuous activity gives your tendons some time to rest and recover from an injury.
• Technique adjustment: In cases where poor technique during a sport or heavy lifting is the basis of an injury, we educate the patient on techniques that would modify their movements to enhance body mechanics and decrease tension on tendons.

4. Cold and Heat Therapy

Cold and heat therapy can be quite helpful in the treatment of tennis elbow:

• Cold therapy: Application of ice packs will help promote vasoconstriction to reduce inflammation and numb pain, which is particularly helpful initially while your injury is fresh.
• Heat treatment usually works by increasing blood flow and relaxing the affected area, hence relieving stiffness and tension in the forearm muscles.

Our hand therapist will educate you on when and how to use cold and heat therapy to maximise the management of your symptoms.

Cortisone or PRP Injections for Tennis Elbow

If the pain from tennis elbow does not improve with conservative hand therapy treatments, other options may be recommended to decrease inflammation and heal the area, such as cortisone injections or PRP injections. This can give longer-term relief for the patients who have pain despite therapy. Our hand therapy specialists liaise closely with your GP or a specialist hand and upper limb surgeon to organise these.

When Surgery May Be Indicated

Most of the time, tennis elbow can be treated by non-surgical means, but patients that do not improve after 6-12 months with conservative management can consider surgical intervention. The common surgical options include the removal of the injured tissue and restoration of the function by repair of the tendon.

If surgery becomes required, our hand therapists will continue to treat you with post-operative rehabilitation to assure a smooth recovery and back to normal activity.

Prevention of Tennis Elbow

Prevention plays a very important role in reducing the risk for tennis elbow. Our clinic offers education and exercises that can help the patients reduce its recurrence. Following are some tips that could be beneficial in avoiding the sports injury:

• Strengthening exercises: These strengthen the forearm and wrist muscles to protect the area from injury and decrease further incidence of tennis elbow. Stretching and warm-ups: Injuries to the muscles and tendons in the forearm can be prevented if they are stretched before activity. Proper technique: Proper body mechanics and ergonomic techniques minimize the amount of strain placed on the elbow and forearm.

Why Choose Our Hand Therapy Experts for Tennis Elbow?

Our hand therapy specialists offer personalised treatment for tennis elbow. By combining techniques in hand physiotherapy, splinting, bracing, and taping, our hand physiotherapist will help you achieve full recovery and prevent future injuries .

If you are experiencing elbow pain or think you may be suffering from tennis elbow, call our Sydney hand therapy clinic today for an appointment.