Tennis Elbow Treatment in Oakville
Tennis elbow is more common than people realize. It develops from people doing daily repetitive tasks, not just from sports.
While most injuries are fixable, the problem is that people tend to ignore the pain of tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis) until it becomes severe. This initial tendonitis pain becomes chronic over time, turning into severe elbow pain. Depending on the location of your elbow pain, it can either be called tennis elbow or golfers elbow. If the pain is on the outside of the elbow when your palm is facing up then that is tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis) and if the pain is on the inside of the elbow with the palm facing up then its is golfers below (medial epicondylitis).
With manual therapy in the surrounding supportive muscles and nerves, patients get relief from elbow, wrist, and hand pain symptoms. However, in symptoms caused by severe injuries, surgery may provide the best chance for a full recovery.
What causes tennis elbow?
Tennis elbow develops due to repetitive job-related use or sports injury.
Common causes include:
- Elbow bursitis (inflammation of the fluid-filled sac called the olecranon bursa, which protects the elbow joint)
- Ligament, nerve, muscle, or tendon injuries from repetitive motions in sports
- Repetitive use injuries from leading a physically active life
- Repetitive motion when completing everyday tasks
- Repetitive work-related injuries, e.g., assembly line work, driving
- Falling on the elbow (funny bone) or an outstretched arm
Common tennis elbow symptoms
- Long-term chronic pain/tenderness on the outside of the elbow bone, elbow, wrist, and hand
- Aggravated wrist or hand pain when you grip or lift an object
- Pain radiating down the lateral or outside aspect of the forearm
- Pain radiating down the medial or inside aspect of the forearm
- Weakness in the muscle group responsible for pulling the wrist back
- Pressure in the ulnar nerve and median nerve, resulting in pain/numbness in the ring and pinky fingers
What’s the difference between tennis elbow vs golfers elbow?
Tennis elbow and golfers elbow are common overuse injuries. But is there a difference between tennis elbow vs golf elbow?
Depending on the location of your elbow pain, it can either be called tennis elbow or golfers elbow. Tennis elbow is also known as lateral epicondylitis, is tendonitis which causes pain on the outside of the elbow when your palm is facing up. Most commonly seen in tennis players from repeatedly making forceful extension wrist motions to hit a tennis ball and the forearm muscles causing repetitive tension on the lateral epicondyle on the outside surface of the elbow.
Golfers elbow also known as medial epicondylitis, is tendonitis which causes pain on the inside of the elbow with the palm facing up. Most commonly seen in golfers from repeatedly making forceful wrist flexion motion with swing of the golf club and the forearm muscles causing repetitive tension on the medial epicondyle on the inside surface of the elbow.
Non-surgical treatment for tennis elbow in Oakville
Tennis elbow is a painful condition, but the pain disappears as soon as the injury heals with treatment. At OAK Physio & Wellness, we offer effective tennis elbow treatment in Oakville. The one good thing about these injuries is that tennis elbow treatment in Oakville could also work for the golfer’s elbow.
At OAK Physio & Wellness, our therapists can provide you with a personalized treatment plan unique to your situation.
Some of our treatment techniques include:
Soft tissue release
Most tennis elbow pain is due to mechanical overuse of the tendons and muscles around the elbow joint. At OAK Physio & Wellness, our soft tissue release techniques, inflammation-reducing modalities and specialized treatments work by limiting symptoms accompanying your elbow condition, including pain, nerve stress, tight muscles, and poor joint function.
Massage therapy
Are you suffering from soft tissue limitations due to tennis elbow pain? Massage therapy and Physiotherapy treatments are effective ways to manage the pain associated with tennis elbow. These soft tissue therapies boost the natural healing process, allowing pain-free motion when you eventually get back into the swing of things.
Acupuncture
At OAK Physio & Wellness, our holistic approach to treating tennis elbow, hand pain, and wrist pain provides you with a way to get your life back on track and reduce the chance of re-injury.
We offer acupuncture as a tennis elbow treatment in Oakville as part of our suite of advanced treatments. Acupuncture therapy includes the insertion of hair thin needles into the muscles around the elbow to stimulate healing in the elbow soft tissues and surrounding nerves. This treatment works best when you also physically perform low-impact, supervised exercises at home.
Enjoy effective tennis elbow treatment in Oakville today
If you’re suffering from tennis elbow due to injury or other underlying factors, it’s crucial to find relief. Thankfully, several therapies are available to help you manage your condition over the long term.
OAK Physio & Wellness offers effective tennis elbow treatment in Oakville and the surrounding areas to help individuals overcome tennis elbow pain. We can also provide advice and information on what you can do at home to reduce underlying joint pain and improve joint motion, enabling you to participate in sports and lead a normal life.
See What We Can Do For You
To schedule an appointment with our healthcare providers in Oakville, please contact us at (289) 725-0241.
FAQ
Yes, you can cure tennis elbow pain with effective treatment, it often gets better with physical therapy and over-the-counter medications. However, if you don’t see any improvement, make an appointment with your doctor, who may refer you to physical therapy.
We recommend stretching your arm for tennis elbow as soon as you get out of bed. Bend your arm backward, but stop immediately if you feel a sharp pain when doing this. This is because you may injure the triceps tendon in your elbow that connects your forearm to your shoulder on the inner part of your elbow.
There’s no yes or no answer to this question. Ultimately, the best prevention for tennis elbow is to reduce the stress on your tendons. Your physical therapist will recommend specific therapeutic exercises and treatments to reduce your pain and prevent further inflammation and nerve compression damage.
Many people find that tennis elbow hurts worst at night. Many are also experiencing pain when they do typical morning stretches and exercises as soon as they wake. This is because the injured tendon and muscle areas are inactive muscles during sleep, stiffening due to reduced blood flow.
Avoid putting repetitive pressure on the affected arm, elbow, wrist, and hand if you have a tennis elbow. Try sleeping on your back, as this position doesn’t put too much pressure on the injured tendons and nerves, ensuring blood flow to the affected arm remains normal.
Strains refer to tendon or muscle injuries; sprains refer to injuries in the ligaments that connect bone to bone.
Yes. Although most people think of carpal tunnel syndrome as affecting the hands and fingers, the pain can also extend to your elbow, wrist, and forearm.