Common Causes of Tennis Elbow
Tennis elbow – it’s that nagging pain at your elbow that just does not seem to go away no matter what you do! Tennis elbow is also known as lateral epicondyalgia, named for the area and the type of disorder it is. The lateral epicondyle is at the outside of the elbow and is the site where the common extensor tendon attaches. This tendon is the site where muscles from the back of the hand attach to the elbow. This is the area that becomes irritated with tennis elbow. The tendon, which attaches the forearm muscles to the bone of the elbow, begins to tear a little bit which causes inflammation that worsens with use of the elbow, forearm, and hand.
Tennis elbow is caused by a few different factors. It can be either acute or chronic. Acute tennis elbow occurs when there is too much demand on the tendon too quickly. With acute cases, cellular inflammatory mediators are present to mark inflammation. With chronic tennis elbow, pain develops slowly over time. There are no cellular inflammatory mediators present. Tennis elbow can happen from tasks like sports, a job, from playing an instrument, from fine wrist movements, or from yardwork with power tools.
Racquetball, tennis, and throwing sports tend to put stress on the elbow by repetitively using one arm more than the other. Jobs that require completing the same tasks over and over, such as packaging on an assembly line or sweeping as a janitor, can also cause tennis elbow. This is due to overuse of the muscles that attach to the common extensor tendon. Work activities that use twisting motions at the wrist or power tools that use vibration for long periods of time cause extra stress on the tendon as well.
The key to tennis elbow is that no one develops pain at the elbow from overusing the arm in one activity. It typically takes weeks to months of overuse of the hand and forearm to put enough stress on the elbow to feel pain. Once your elbow is painful, it can take a while for it to improve, but physical therapists are experts in helping you manage it.