If you experience pain and tenderness on the bony knob of your elbow, you’re likely suffering from tennis elbow. It can affect your upper or lower arms and cause pain when working with your hands.
Odom has a variety of successful therapies to treat your tennis elbow and return you to your normal functioning levels. See why we provide the best tennis elbow support in Minnesota.
What is Tennis Elbow?
Tennis elbow is a condition caused when the tendons that attach the forearm and wrist muscles to the outside portion of the elbow become inflamed or irritated due to overuse from repetitive movements.
A tendon is a thick band of connective tissue that attaches a muscle to bone or other structure and aids in moving that body part. Some of the muscles of the forearm and wrist come together into a thick band and that attaches to a bony prominence on the outside of the elbow called the lateral epicondyle.
Movements that involve repetitive straightening and rotating of the forearm can potentially lead to inflammation of the tendons at the point where they attach to the lateral epicondyle. This inflammation causes pain, weakness and stiffness and is referred to as tennis elbow or lateral epicondylalgia.
How Physical Therapy for Tennis Elbow Can Help
A certified Physical Therapist is your best provider to treat musculoskeletal injuries such as tennis elbow. Your physical therapist will first utilize a series of tests, exams and questions about your pain and function to determine if your pain is due to inflammation to the tendons at the lateral epicondyle. They will then prescribe a plan of treatment aimed at reducing your pain and helping you to return to your prior level of function in the shortest possible time.
Treatment from your physical therapist might include:
- Hands-on manual therapy to the affected area.
- Specific eccentric exercises designed to help the tendon repair itself.
- Bracing to help alleviate your pain.
- Education on modifications to your normal activity during the healing process.
Each patient’s pain and recovery require a different process. We track your progress and focus on the tennis elbow exercises and stretches that work best for you.
How is Treatment at Odom Health and Wellness Different?
At Odom Health & Wellness we see tremendous positive outcomes with our tennis elbow patients. In addition to addressing your tennis elbow with physical therapy interventions, we can also tap our collaborative team of providers to address your pain with a variety of treatments. You’ll benefit from experts in:
- Nutrition
- Regenerative Medicine
- Sports Performance
- Sports Massage Therapy.
Oftentimes physical therapy alone can help resolve the pain and dysfunction caused by tennis elbow. Other times patients respond stronger to other therapies. You’ll feel confident in your recuperation knowing you have other options.
How to Prevent Tennis Elbow
Once you’ve managed to resolve your tennis elbow, you’ll want to prevent it from coming back. Our staff can give you the right support and guidance to eliminate elbow pain when working out, lifting or doing repetitive tasks.
Some of the key strategies include:
- Preventative exercises
- Learning proper motion
- Warming up sufficiently
- Pacing yourself
- Using a tennis elbow brace or strap
Whether you enjoy racquet sports or work in carpentry, your physical therapist can recommend a program that protects and strengthens your arm muscles so you can remain active without pain. Our goal is for you to be able to achieve your goals.
The Best Treatment for Tennis Elbow
If you have symptoms of tennis elbow or you’ve tried other therapies in the past but not fully recovered, we encourage you to schedule an appointment with Odom. We’d love to meet and discuss the Regenerative Medicine treatment options available that could provide you with real relief from your elbow pain.