Tennis elbow
Sometimes, patients are surprised when, during a specialist orthopaedic examination, the doctor finds that tennis elbow is the cause of their excruciating joint pain. Contrary to popular belief, tennis elbow is not just a result of sport.
The orthopaedic specialists at the Budapest Musculoskeletal Private Clinic have a wealth of experience and use the latest therapeutic procedures to help patients seeking relief from joint pain.
What is a tennis elbow?
The tennis elbow is the high levels of physical exertion the effect of the tendonitis, and a related, slowly evolving periostitis, which affects the outer surface of the elbow. It is a very common overuse disease in tennis players, but it is not limited to athletes. Tennis elbow is typically when fingers and hand are held back causes sharp pain on the outside of the elbow. The pain increases with exertion and may also increase over time with pain at rest.
Investigation: orthopaedic specialist
Therapy: orthopaedic specialist, physiotherapist-physiotherapist
How is tennis elbow formed?
Tennis players often develop this lesion, but they are not the only ones. Other sports (such as fencing, wall climbing), heavy housework, gardening or playing the violin on a regular basis can also lead to tennis elbow. In fact, hours of computer use every day can also predispose to it. Keyboard and mouse use requires the wrist to be in a supine position. Doing this for long periods of time puts strain on the muscles and can lead to severe and very painful symptoms over time. Tennis elbow may also be caused by inflexibility of the forearm muscles.
What is the difference between tennis elbows and golf elbows?
Both diseases affect certain muscle groups heavy use of, and develops as a result of a series of recurrent microtraumas. The essential difference is that tennis elbow is the on the outer surface of the elbow causes lesions. It mainly affects the forearm's extensor muscles, which originate from the external elbow bulging area.
A golf books in contrast to the elbow on the inner surface causes a lesion. It is caused by strain on the flexor muscles originating from the inner elbow flexor area. It can also cause forearm weakness. It is triggered by frequent repetition of throwing, bending movements and is common in golfers, handball players, gymnasts, but like tennis elbow, golf elbow is not limited to athletes.
Dr. György Kocsis PhD
Orthopaedic traumatologist, hand surgeon, assistant professor, wrist, elbow and shoulder surgeon, upper limb specialist
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Symptoms of tennis elbow
A characteristic symptom of tennis elbow is the pain on the outside of the elbow when the wrist is pulled back. sharp, intense pain, which often occurs, for example, when shaking hands, squeezing movements and opening doors. In more severe cases, the pain also occurs at rest and at night. Patients may also experience more intense symptoms when they wake up in the morning. Pain may also radiate into the shoulders.
Pain associated with tennis elbow develops gradually, and grows stronger over time. To the pain muscle weakness may also be involved, and the patient may find it harder to grasp objects or they may fall out of their hands. If there is also osteomyelitis, the elbow bone becomes very painful when pressed. Numbness of the hand and arm may also be present.
It's important to know that elbow pain can be caused by a number of different things, so if it doesn't go away in a few days, it's important to see an orthopaedic specialist as soon as possible.
How is tennis elbow diagnosed?
If you recognise the symptoms of tennis elbow, contact an orthopaedic specialist, who diagnoses the disease. The diagnosis is easily made on the basis of the patient's complaints and physical examination. The specialist will first ask the patient about their symptoms in detail, and then ask questions about their lifestyle, work, other medical conditions and any medication they are taking. In our practice, we always take time to take a medical history, as this helps us to make an accurate diagnosis.
During the physical examination, the specialist will taps the elbow joint, and controls the range of motion of the joint. If necessary, the doctor may order imaging scans on a case-by-case basis to rule out other elbow conditions.
After the examination, the doctor will inform the patient about the details of the disease and a personalised treatment plan suggests. It can be conservative therapy or, in rarer cases surgery. In the latter case, the doctor will also tell you about the type of operation, the tests required, the anaesthesia options and the recovery process.
A Private Musculoskeletal Clinic in Budapest we have brought together the best and most dedicated orthopaedic specialists in the profession to offer an effective and personalised solution to our patients.
Treatment of tennis elbow
For more severe cases of tennis elbow, surgery may be an option, but fortunately this is relatively rare. If the disease is so advanced or severe that conservative therapy no longer brings significant relief, surgery is performed, usually under general anaesthesia. The procedure involves removing the scarred, shrunken parts of the tendons from the bone, thereby painful, tight feeling can be eliminated. After tennis elbow surgery physiotherapy is recommended, with an expected recovery time of 3-4 weeks.
The idea of surgery can be a source of anxiety for many people, but this can be reduced by explaining to our patients in detail what will happen to them during the operation, what rehabilitation they will have to expect and what the surgical outcome will be. Our patients any questions you may have we will try to answer in detail.
Fortunately, tennis elbow often responds well to conservative treatment. This includes from rest, consists of icing the sore area, painkillers and anti-inflammatory ointments. For more severe pain, steroid injections may also be considered. It is important that patients avoid any movements that cause pain.
At the Budapest Musculoskeletal Private Clinic, we also help our patients with tennis elbow to recover with the very effective shock wave therapy. Repeated 15-minute shockwave therapy can result in lasting improvement in as little as 2-4 weeks in 80% of cases! Up to 1 treatment per week may be sufficient to achieve beautiful results.
A shock wave therapy an electrotherapeutic treatment method in which energy is delivered to the body in the form of waves. This makes circulation more efficient locally, which triggers the healing process, and tennis elbow pain is visibly and permanently reduced. Long also ideal for treating existing, intense pain shockwave therapy.
Complex physiotherapy treatment can greatly reduce the chance of tennis elbow recurrence and relieve existing symptoms. Physiotherapy helps to stretch the muscles around the elbow and relieve muscle stiffness and pain. The therapy also includes strengthening the muscles of the upper arm and shoulder, which can help to relieve the strain on the elbow joint.
Are you experiencing symptoms of tennis elbow? Do you have other joint problems? Are you finding it harder to move than you used to?
Make an appointment now at the Budapest Musculoskeletal Private Clinic for a specialist examination by calling +36 (1) 44-33-433.
Our hand surgeons
Dr. György Kocsis PhD
Orthopaedic traumatologist, hand surgeon, assistant professor, wrist, elbow and shoulder surgeon, upper limb specialist