By: Dr. Luke Coleman, PT, DPT
Elbow pain can put a serious damper on your weekend hobbies or even day-to-day tasks. The two most common culprits of elbow pain are golfer’s and tennis elbow, which are injuries that sound sport-specific but can affect anyone, athlete or not.
The biggest difference lies in which side of the elbow is affected. Golfer’s elbow causes pain on the inside of the elbow. This is where the forearm flexor muscles attach to the bone on the inside of the elbow, known as the medial epicondyle. However, tennis elbow causes pain on the outside of the elbow. This is where the forearm extensor muscles attach to a structure known as the lateral epicondyle. Despite their sport-specific name, neither condition requires you to pick up a club, racket, or paddle.
As physical therapists, we can assist with diagnosing these conditions based on a physical exam and personal history of activities. Specific tests, such as gripping, flexing, or extending the wrist against pressure, can help pinpoint which tendons are involved. This is important because understanding exactly where the irritation is occurring allows us to design a treatment plan that’s tailored to your needs, helping you return to your favorite activities pain-free.
The encouraging news is that both golfers and tennis elbow respond well to conservative treatment. The initial steps to recovery are relatively similar for both injuries.
- Rest: Temporarily avoiding the motions and activities that seem to irritate the injury.
- Ice: can help reduce pain and inflammation.
- Stretching and strengthening: gentle stretching and strengthening of the affected muscles to help prevent recurrence.
Once we have reduced irritation on either side of the elbow, we can begin to focus on preventing re-injury. Some easy re-injury prevention strategies include warming up, continuing to strengthen and improve mobility, and taking adequate breaks. Warming up only takes a few minutes and allows the working muscles to gradually ramp up the intensity, which will keep muscles from over-exerting themselves. Continuing to strengthen and improve mobility allows the muscles to withstand a higher load or demand placed on them. Theoretically, this means you can play more without pain (assuming you warmed up first!). Lastly and most importantly, taking adequate breaks allows the muscles to heal. If the muscles cannot rest and heal, then the chances of re-injury become very high.
While golfer’s and tennis elbow affect opposite sides of the joint, they share the same underlying story… Overworked tendons need a chance to recover and adapt. By addressing them early, following a thoughtful rehabilitation plan, and adopting simple prevention strategies, you can protect your elbows and keep doing the things you enjoy, whether that is swinging a racket, gripping a golf club, or simply carrying your morning coffee without a wince.
At Professional Rehabilitation Services, we pride ourselves on distinction and continually pursue specialty training to provide our patients with a higher level of care. If you or someone you know is experiencing elbow pain or a similar issue and would like to learn more, consider consulting a physical therapist at one of our 10 locations or consulting your physician for a referral to our facilities. Physical therapy is a regularly covered service by most health insurance plans. We also offer free 15-minute consultations as a great way to identify if you are a candidate for treatment! You can contact Professional Rehabilitation Services at (843) 282-0440, or visit our website at www.prsrehabservices.com
