Elbow pain is most often the result of tendinitis, which can affect the inner or outer elbow.
Treatment includes ice, rest, and medication for inflammation. Elbow pain has many other causes including arthritis and bursitis. Funny bone sensation is irritation of a nerve at the elbow that causes numbness and tingling of the inner elbow, forearm as well as little and ring fingers. Bacteria can infect the skin of a scraped (abraded) elbow to cause pain.
Elbow is a complex joint that allows you to perform pushing and pulling movements and to rotate your forearm.
Elbow pain can be caused by injury or strain to the bones in your elbow joint, the surrounding muscles or the tendons, which attach the muscles to the bones. Elbow pain may also be due to damage arising from the elbow joint’s network of nerves, blood vessels and ligaments. On occasion, problems in your neck, shoulder and upper arm, or your forearm and wrist can result in elbow pain. Elbow pain usually isn’t serious, but because you use your elbow in so many ways, elbow pain can definitely affect your life.
Elbow pain is an extremely common complaint, and there are many common causes of this problem. It is important to make an accurate diagnosis of the cause of your symptoms so that appropriate treatment can be directed at the cause.
If you have elbow pain, some common causes include:
- LATERAL EPICONDYLITIS (TENNIS ELBOW) – Tennis elbow is characterized by soreness or pain on the outside of the upper arm near the elbow. There may be a partial tear of the tendon fibers which joins the muscle to bone near their point of origin on the outside of the elbow.
- MEDIAL EPICONDYLITIS (GOLFER’S ELBOW) – Golfer’s elbow, or medial epicondylitis, is similar to its counterpart, tennis elbow. The primary differences between these conditions are the location of the pain and the activity that leads to injury.
- OLECRANON BURSITIS – Elbow bursitis, also called olecranon bursitis, causes fluid to collect in a sac that lies behind the elbow, called the olecranon bursa
- CUBITAL TUNNEL SYNDROME – Nerve compression syndromes cause symptoms including pain, numbness, and weakness. Nerves can become pinched for a variety of reasons
- ULNAR NERVE NEURITIS – Ulnar nerve neuritis begins with a little bit of tingling in the little and ring fingers especially when placing the elbow on arm rests in cars or on a chair.
When do you need to CALL US about your elbow pain?
If you are unsure of the cause of your elbow pain, or if you do not know the specific treatment recommendations for your condition, you should seek medical attention. Treatment of these conditions must be directed at the specific cause of your problem. Some signs that you should be seen by a doctor include:
- Inability to carry objects or use the arm
- Injury that causes deformity of the joint
- Elbow pain that occurs at night or while resting
- Elbow pain that persists beyond a few days
- Inability to straighten or flex the arm
- Swelling or significant bruising around the joint or arm
- Signs of an infection, including fever, redness, warmth
- Any other unusual symptoms
What are the best treatments for elbow pain?
The treatment of elbow pain depends entirely on the cause of the problem. Therefore, it is of utmost importance that you understand the cause of your symptoms before embarking on a treatment program. If you are unsure of your diagnosis, or the severity of your condition, you should seek medical advice before beginning any treatment.
