If you are enduring some serious amount of pain in your elbow, you might happen to be a victim of a condition called golfer’s elbow. Unlike its name, it can be related to a number of different sports and work tasks, not just golfing! This niggling elbow pain can be cured through a few sessions of physiotherapy with your therapist in order for you to gain control of your condition.
What is Golfer’s Elbow?
We can associate golfer’s elbow, or medial epicondylitis, with irritation to the muscles and flexor tendons that attach to the inside of the elbow. In the ordinary course, it is caused by continual movements of the forearm and wrist thereby making it difficult for you to move it. It should not be confused with tennis elbow.
What Causes Golfer’s Elbow?
Golfer’s elbow can be induced by a number of factors that collectively strain the muscle tissues resulting in impairment and consequent discomfort and threatening the functionality of the same. It occurs when more force is applied to an area than the normal healthy tissues can bear. Soreness follows the injury that leads to swelling and elbow pain. Various strenuous physical activities where excessive or recurrent stress is placed on the hand, wrist, and forearm can also fire up golfer’s elbow. Cases that involve one to weightlift with poor form, throw or hit a ball improperly, not warming up properly, improper conditioning in terms of the sport or physical activity one is doing, could contribute to golfer’s elbow.
Be it an office worker who uses a computer, a person in manual labour or someone indulged in as simple as cooking a lot – one can damage one’s tendons and cause this condition. A certain set of people are at higher risk of golfer’s elbow if they fall under the age group of 30 to 50 years. An obese person or a chain smoker is also more likely to develop this condition.
Symptoms of Golfer’s Elbow
Though easy to diagnose, golfer’s elbow symptoms comprise of pain on the inner, medial side of the elbow, and the forearm. The pain gets worse when one flexes one’s wrist and also, while gripping and lifting objects. The discomfort can even intensify in performing activities as simple as turning a doorknob.
The condition is outlined by pain and tenderness. However, one’s elbow may feel stiff and struggle with weakness in the wrist and hand with or without unresponsiveness or tingling that exudes into one or more fingers.
How can Physiotherapy Treatment Help?
The golfer’s elbow treatment plan involves a combination of rest and physiotherapy to relieve muscle tightness and pain. The quicker the treatment begins, the better the prognosis.
In early stages, when the level of pain is maximum, it is advised to use a golfer’s elbow brace around the elbow to unload the painful tendon. To effectively manage the pain and help the early healing process, the following technique is used:
1. Protection
2. Ice
3. Compression
4. Elevation
As the pain eventually settles, the focus switches primarily to exercises, both, with and without joint movement, and gradually to speed work. To loosen the affected joint, the process of gentle manipulation is carried out. The soft tissues are then treated with an array of massage techniques.
If you have a golfer’s elbow and wish to resume what once used to be your daily routine, a course of physiotherapy with us is all you need to earn your momentum back! Book an appointment with us at Care 2 Cure Physiotherapy and Rehab Centre.
