Tennis Elbow
What is the condition?
Simply put, tennis elbow is an inflammation of a tendon at the elbow. This tendon is associated with the muscle that extends your wrist and fingers.
How do you get it?
Because these muscles are put under load during a tennis backhand, this is how the injury occurs. That is how the injury got its name originally. However, playing tennis is not prerequisite to getting tennis elbow. Any repetitive extension motion can cause the tendon to be inflamed and cause tennis elbow.
What problems does it cause?
The symptoms of tennis elbow develop gradually. In most cases, the pain begins as mild and slowly worsens over weeks and months.
Common signs and symptoms of tennis elbow include:
- Pain or burning on the outer part of your elbow
- Weak grip strength
The symptoms are often worsened with forearm activity, such as holding a controller, lifting a cup, or performing an extension with your wrist or fingers. Your dominant arm is most often affected; however, both arms can be affected.
What is the treatment?
As a treatment that is most effective for tendon inflammation, shockwave therapy is often remarkably successful in treating the condition. In combination with manual therapy, exercise therapy, and dry needling, we achieve excellent results with our patients presenting with tennis elbow.