Tennis elbow – What a pain in the…..elbow!

More recently I have seen an increase in the number of patients coming through our door with pain on the outside of their elbow.

With increased demands at work ( keyboard, mouse or repetitive use of tools) , Sport ( repetitive sports like Tennis, Squash or Golf) and increased use of our mobile phones there can be an overuse repetitive strain on the extensor muscles of the forearm. The extensor muscles of the forearm are attached to the outside ‘lateral’ aspect of the elbow. Previously it has been called an inflammatory condition but with new recent evidence its actually more a tendinopathy and the inflammatory part is only present in the early stages. With tendinopathies there is different changes to the tissue and can mean different ways on how we manage the tendon compared to previous strategies.

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Previously, people have been prescribed long term anti-inflammatories but we know now that this has no long term benefit for the tendon. When you look at more recent research its the changes to the structure of the tendon that as physiotherapist we need to try change rather than the inflammatory issue. The tendon thickens and fibres cross over each other which causes the tissue to have less strength than the original. With tendinopathies the condition could have been brewing for a long period of time but only recently pain appears (like an iceberg effect).

A skilled physiotherapist will be able to tell you at what stage you are at with the injury and where to start your rehabilitation and progressions. It is an important part of an assessment and can help you progress faster.

They will be able to tell you if you need to offload the injury, how to ‘optimally load’ the tendon and progress yourself gradually.

Research has shown that Shockwave therapy is one of the most effective ways to treat tennis elbow. Shockwave stimulates metabolism and improves the blood circulation. Damaged fibres regenerate and heal. Shockwave along with the progressive loading programme have shown to be the most successful in treating tennis elbow

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Please feel free to contact us about Shockwave therapy or you can book online to see one of our chartered physiotherapists.