*
Neil,
Bad news; good news. The tennis elbow will be with you always; treated properly, it will go into remission. I had a period of a year when I could not do much with the right arm. I did it by really leaning into the drill as I was removing 3″ screws from an old wall.
Good book (recommended by someone on BreakTime) – Repetitive Strain Injury by Emil Pascarelli
Personal BTDT observations:
Wear the elbow brace all the time to prevent reinjury. The elbow is feeling better; you don’t wear the brace; you screw it up again.
Switch to a Titan Stilleto hammer (16 oz). It really works.
You can surf for braces. Try www.LabSafety.com.
ToolBear
Replies
*
As noted above, tennis elbow is inflammation of the tendons that connect the forearm muscles to the elbow (tendonitis). It is usually a chronic overuse-type syndrome and is very common in construction workers and other people who do repetitive arm activities. It is easily diagnosed by palpable tenderness over the appropriate area of the elbow joint.
There are several treatments available including the following:
1. Rest
2. Ice
3. Anti-inflammatory agents, over the counter and presciption (agree with the above comments though regarding potential side effects in some people including occasional intestinal bleeding)
4. Elbow straps wrapped around the upper forearm just below the elbow joint (when the forearm muscles contract, they take some of the tension off the tendon between the strap and the elbow)
5. Physical Therapy
6. Cortisone Injections into the tendon. This is simple and safe and often relieves the pain within a couple days. It will not however prevent recurrences in someone who continues to stress the tendon. If someone has persistent pain despite trying some of the above I would recommend seeing a physician to consider a cortisone injection or other potential treatments.
Jim Roberts, MD
*Ok, guys.Let me preface this by saying that if you keep hurting, go see your own doctor. I'm an orthopedic surgeon who does DIY on my house, no reason you can't try a little DIY on your body. But just like you would tell me, please respect your limits and your knowledge,and get professional help if needed.Tennis elbow, technically is called lateral epicondylitis.It is on the basis of micro-tearing of the attachment of the muscles that bring your wrist up. Whenever you do anything, you do a little damage to your body, which your body can heal with rest. So if your injury rate exceeds your repair rate, you get pain.SO: 2 things to do: 1) lower your injury rate, and 2) help yourself heal it.How to lower your injury rate: shock absorbing hammer handles; lift with your palm UP, not down; Stretch before you work; and consider nail guns when appropriate.How to help yourself heal it: Part of the problem is that your body's response to the injury is inflammation. As long as your stomach is OK and you're not allergic, Ibuprofen, or one of the other over-the-counter meds like Aleve, can help.But if you take them for a long time, or drink alcohol, you can be asking for trouble.Ice, and even ice massage (massage with an ice cube, dig in deep, all up and down the muscle mass and over the sore spot) can help.Tennis elbow straps are useful, they transfer the forces a bit. I like straps that are at least 1.5 inches wide, whether they are just foam-lined Velcro or neoprene, or have an air bubble....whatever you find. They should gently compress that muscle group that attaches to the sore bony prominence, so they go below your elbow, just short of the crease when your arm is bent.And try stretching and strengthening: grip squeezers, wringing motions on a cloth, forearm curls, and STRETCHES.If all else fails, see your friendly orthopedic surgeon, before it gets so chronic that it's hard to get rid of.Steve BondBTW: I agree with everything Jim Roberts said above. I just like to hear myself type!
*About 20 years ago, while working as a residential framer my elbow felt like someone was sticking a knife in it if I tried to pick up a carton of milk. Went to my GP and he gave me a shot of cortisone. Pain went away for two weeks. Came back, went to GP., he said rest. I'm not rich, I have to work, so I put up with the pain. One day I stopped by my local acupuncturist. We talked. He said that he could make the pain go away with 7 to 10 visits. I went 7 times. The pain went away and has never come back. I still worked as a carpenter but not always as a framer. (Don't ever work as a framer anymore.
*
What do you guys use or take for tennis elbow?
*Elbow Grease!Seriously, that inflamation can be debilitating. Had it so bad could not lift a 12 oz drink to my mouth. Initially, I was told cold wrap to bring the swelling down and after the first day to start a warm wrap to promote circulation and healing. Also, an anti-inflamatory, such as aspirin. And, of course, stop doing what you were doing to cause the problem in the first place. So, what do you do - stop working just to feel better and get well sooner - or put the food on the table and bear with it a little longer. Happy to say I eat well and the tennis elbow is mostly gone.Ralph (elbows up on the groaning board) :-)
*Neil,I wore a forearm wrap, ate many advil, and switched to a 16oz Plumb. A 4# maul still hurts but I don't have to swing that often. I also love Senco.KK
*So called tennis "elbow" is tendonitis of the elbow, but it is caused by use of the wrist. Prescription strength Motrin, several 800mg caps daily helps lots. Wearing a wrist splint helps too, if you must work. Unfortunately, unless you lay off and cure it, it can become chronic.
*Mike is right on the money about the rest and motrin.My elbows don't generally bother me in the warmer months unless I really abuse them. Cold weather is a different story.I have started wearing some rubber elbow braces that cover the entire elbow during cold weather work or heavy warm weather usage. They keep the elbow warm and under minor compression and really work well for me. I haven't had to take the motrin now for a long time
*I have no idea if this would be helpful, but...In last week's Newsweek, there is this story on, among other things, pain and tart red cherry juice..>lab tests show that the anthocyanins in tart cherries give 10 times the anti-inflammatory relief of aspirin, without irritating the stomach. They are also potent antioxidants. Rich Beckman
*Hey Stephen, Who is the manufacturer of the elbow braces you mentioned and where did you purchase them?
*Mad Dog,The labels say ELASTO-PREENE by TRU-FIT.I have bought them from several different sporting goods stores so finding them should be easy.They usually cost $10-12 bucks and at that price I keep 3-4 of them scattered around house,truck,shop etc.so one is always available.Good Luck,Stephen
*Neil,Bad news; good news. The tennis elbow will be with you always; treated properly, it will go into remission. I had a period of a year when I could not do much with the right arm. I did it by really leaning into the drill as I was removing 3" screws from an old wall.Good book (recommended by someone on BreakTime) - Repetitive Strain Injury by Emil PascarelliPersonal BTDT observations: Wear the elbow brace all the time to prevent reinjury. The elbow is feeling better; you don't wear the brace; you screw it up again. Switch to a Titan Stilleto hammer (16 oz). It really works.You can surf for braces. Try http://www.LabSafety.com.ToolBear
*I'll try anything once. Juice, advil, splints and braces. I used to have elbow grease, but as I get older, I guess I ran out. Thus the problem. Thanks for the repondses. Anyone else have an old wives tail cure. I am going to Fla. tomorrow and try a little R&R. Back in two weeks and hope the pain goes away. I'll check back then. Thanks guys.
*FWIW, my mother swore by accupuncture - she had actual tennis elbow...
*Neil, others,I'm not by any means a doctor, or pharmacist, but you should be aware that NSAIDS, which include such over the counter drugs as aspirin, motrin, nuprin, aleve, any form of ibuprofin, are not to be taken like candy, in megadoses, on a daily basis.They cause serious side effects, including death, for many people, especially, when "popped" on a daily basis.I've personally experienced some of these side effects, and would reccommend to anyone who takes these over the counter drugs on a daily basis, to do a search on your favorite "search engine", for NSAIDS, to find out what I'm talking about. It's a little bit scarry.By any means, if you start to feel daily stomach discomfort, abdominal pain, while you are taking these NSAIDS, don't blame it on the Chinese or Tex-Mex that you ate last night. You may be bleeding internally and hemoraging from your "daily candy".Been there, done that.
*I am happy to say that I used to have this problem (knock on wood). I am convinced that it was caused by hammering, and the vibration it put on my elbow. Since then I got rid of the 24oz steel shaft Estwing - now use fiberglass shaft/rubber grip hammers, that, and the fact that my trigger finger is much better utilized. For years I wore a strap around my upper forearm and did the Advil thing. Strange to have a chronic ailment in the past, eh?
*Mad Dog, I found a cheap set of elbow braces by accident. I cut the top three inches off some wetsuit booties I had to make them easier to get on, the leftover tops are perfect elbow braces. If you have access to anything like that give them a try. Works for me. Skip
*Neil Two weeks in Florida sounds like my kinda cure. Enjoy it but are You gonna be fishing?
*Developed ye old "tennis elbow" by doing a stupid stunt of playing a game the "Eskimos" (prefer to be called "Inupiat" in Alaska) used to play of seeing how long you could hold up a heavy object with just your grip. (There competitions at the Inupiat games in Barrow were primarily about how much pain you could endure - like seeing how much weight you could suspend from your ear, how far you could go across a wood floor in a push-up position using only your nuckles, etc.) Anyway, went to a top rated Orthopedic surgeon at a teaching hostpital and asked about exercises and medication but the only thing he wanted to talk about was surgery - so for about $150 for five minutes, I ended up learning only that doctors are really expensive...Helped my elbow (actually tendon) problem considerably by using a simple neoprene "brace" and doing some strengthening exercises. I used the exercises at:http://www.physsportsmed.com/issues/may_96/nirscpa.htmbut the site at:http://www.medisport.co.uk/elbow.htmmay be of interest because they describe three different elbow problems that are similar and show exercises for each (and also they are demonstrated by a rather attractive young lady...)If you would like to go the surgery route, you can read up on the supposed virtues of this treatment at:http://patient.orthogate.org/ctd/latepi/latepi.html#treatmentandhttp://www.scoi.com/teniselb.htm
*In addition to sporting goods stores, K-Mart and Wally Mart carry a selection. They range frome ones that look like "support hose" to neoprene that is adjustable with velcro to circular neoprene. I found the circular neoprene that is about 8 inches long to be the best. The velcro ones and I didn't get along. They also have some that are straps that don't give much, but I found that the neoprene ones are more comfortable and work just as well if not better.
*There have recently been some studies summarized in the medical press that reports that some legitimate studies have shown that acupuncture actually works to relieve pain to some degree in a majority of cases. There was even one that indicated it worked with tennis elbow.
*NeilTwo weeks won't do it...more like 4-6 months depending on the severity. Get the brace as others have advised, I make out ok with the formed plastic type with the velcro fastener from a sporting goods store. If possible, try to avoid the pain killers while working, they mask the pain but could i allowyou to do more damage.The injury could either be "tennis elbow" or "golfers elbow" depending upon which area was damaged. i Tennis elbowinvolves the muscles and tendons that bend back (extend) the wrist and fingers.The pain occurs on the outside of the elbow. i Golfers elbow involves the muscles that flex the wrist & fingers with the pain on the inside of the elbow.There are exercises to do for each condition, such as stretches,& wrist curls. Also squeezing a rubber ball wil also stengthen the injured area.Been living with it for years.-pm
*Read this.