Many of us at some time or other will experience elbow pain, especially in the back of the elbow. Normally, elbow pain isn’t alarming, and it shouldn’t raise any red flags. In fact, most of the time, you can easily manage it at home. However, if the pain gets too intense, occurs too often or you notice swelling around the elbow, you should seek medical help immediately.
In this article, we’ll go over common causes of pain in the back of the elbow, a few steps you could take to alleviate it at home, and some effective treatments offered at the MyMSK Clinic.
Causes Of Elbow Pain:
There are a lot of causes for elbow pain at the back of the elbow. These causes usually vary from person to person. If it’s merely because of a sore muscle or minor trauma to your elbow, rest should be enough to deal with the pain. However, if you’re experiencing pain in your elbow that persists for longer than a couple of hours and if it becomes more painful than just mild discomfort, you need to find out the cause of the pain and get proper treatment.
Here are some of the most prominent causes of pain in the back of the elbow:
1- Arthritis
Arthritis is a general term used to define any degenerative or Inflammatory joint disease or process that may cause one or multiple joints to ache and swell up. Usually, arthritis develops in the later years of a person’s life. Arthritis can also cause elbow pain if it affects the elbow joint. Here are the two most prominent types of arthritis that affect the elbow joint:
- Osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis is the most common form of degenerative joint disease that occurs due to cartilage breakdown in the joints. If your elbow is inflicted with osteoarthritis, it will become stiff and swollen. Most importantly, it will start to ache, and the movement of your elbow will be highly restricted and painful. You may find bending the elbow becomes more difficult than straightening it
- Rheumatoid
Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease that inflames the lining of the joints and causes consistent damage to joint tissues. It can affect many joints at the same time, including the elbow joint. The tissue damage caused by rheumatoid can lead to chronic pain, stiffness, and deformity in the elbow joint.
2- Medial Epicondylitis (Golfer’s Elbow)
Medial Epicondylitis occurs due to repeated and forceful wrist movements that gradually damage the flexor muscles of the forearm, such as repeated lifting or twisting movements. It is known as Golfer’s Elbow because it is very common in Golfers due to the repeated swinging motion. If contracted, a golfer’s elbow can lead to elbow pain and restriction in movement.
The good news is that, unlike arthritis, a golfer’s elbow can be treated more easily. Also, you can easily prevent it by subtle changes to your routine, like warming up before doing physical activity. You shouldn’t ignore golfer’s elbow pain. If left untreated, a golfer’s elbow can lead to chronic pain and permanently restricted movement.
3- Olecranon Bursitis
Olecranon Bursitis is an ailment that causes swelling in the fluid-filled sac (called the bursa) at the tip of the elbow. The swelling can lead to redness, stiffness, and pain. Olecranon Bursitis can be caused by a variety of reasons, such as:
- Trauma to the elbow.
- Too much pressure on the elbow, such as leaning or resting against a hard surface for a long time.
- Infection of bursa from a cut or insect bite.
- Degenerative Arthritis can also lead to Olecranon Bursitis.
4- Triceps Tendonitis
Triceps tendonitis is an injury or inflammation in the tendon that connects the tricep muscles in the back of the arm to the elbow bone called the olecranon process. Triceps tendonitis is fairly common and occurs due to excessive use of your triceps, such as heavy workouts with little to no recovery time. It can cause pain in your elbow along with swelling and redness. You can avoid triceps tendonitis by warming up before a workout, lowering the stress on your triceps (for bodybuilders this can mean reducing the load during Tricep extension or pushdowns and Bench Press exercises) and getting adequate rest periods between workouts.
5 – Cubital Tunnel Syndrome
Cubital Tunnel Syndrome is a condition that occurs because of excessive pressure on the ulnar nerve, which passes through your elbow. At the early onset of this condition, the sensation is quite similar to getting hit on the “funny bone” in your elbow. However, if left untreated, it can lead to severe elbow pain. Unlike other afflictions, it can cause slight pain and tingling sensations in your fingers. Cubital Tunnel Syndrome can be caused by a few reasons that include:
- Direct pressure to the Ulnar nerve
- Stretching
- Reduced blood flow to the elbow area
- Nerve entrapment within the Cubital tunnel by a bony spur from Arthritis.
6 – Impingement
Elbow impingement is another cause of pain in the back of the elbow. This often presents with pain or discomfort when trying to straighten the arm or fully extend the elbow. What we often find in this scenario is a chronic injury or degenerative process in the elbow contributing to the issue. Sometimes an osteophyte or joint degeneration can cause an obstruction to the olecranon process fully extending and articulating with the olecranon fossa of the humerus. Ultrasound scanning dynamically or an xray will often show a bony spur or osteophyte within the elbow joint
Self-Care / Manage Elbow Pain At Home:
If you are experiencing pain in the back of your elbow, here are a few steps you can take to manage the pain effectively at home:
- Resting & Changing How You Move: The importance of resting your whole arm if your elbow has been injured or if you’re experiencing elbow pain can not be overstated. Resting your arm gives your elbow the time to heal on its own. Also, you can change the way you move to ensure that your elbow doesn’t hurt. For instance, you can keep your arm parallel to the ground and bend at the elbow at a comfortable angle.
- Taking Painkillers: You can take over the counter painkillers to deal with elbow pain, especially if your elbow experienced a minor trauma and there isn’t any visible sign of serious damage. It’s even better to rest after taking painkillers to give your elbow the time to heal.
- Using elbow supports/braces: Using elbow supports/braces is an effective and easy way to deal with recurring elbow pain. They add support to your elbow, taking some of the burdens off of it during movements. Elbow supports are especially useful if your work requires you to put stress on your elbow or if you’re an athlete.
- Exercise modification: Sometimes, all our elbow needs is to be exercised correctly. This may mean offloading certain muscle groups and concentrating on eccentric low weight exercises. Light exercises such as stretching can help relieve elbow pain.
Diagnosis Of Elbow Pain:
It’s important to diagnose the exact cause of your elbow pain to devise a proper treatment plan. At MyMSK Clinic, we conduct a thorough physical examination as well as imaging tests to diagnose the cause of the elbow pain along with its severity.
- Physical Exam: Our highly experienced osteopath, Dr Akhtar, will thoroughly examine our patient’s elbow, including their range of motion and severity of the swelling, to understand the cause behind their elbow pain.
- Imaging Tests: We also conduct imaging tests like Ultrasound scans within the clinic to check if there are any loose bodies, degeneration, ligament injuries, or fractures in the elbow joint or the bones surrounding it. Occasionally we may need to order an xray if a fracture is suspected
Elbow Pain Treatment
After diagnosing the exact cause of the elbow pain, we devise a treatment plan for our patients to help them manage the pain and lead healthy life. Treatment options before coming to the clinic include:
1- Medication
We sometimes advise NSAIDS, OTC painkillers, or ointments to patients suffering from elbow pain. The medication can vary depending upon your ailment and medical history. We may also recommend other treatment options along with the medication to help you deal with the elbow pain effectively.
Specifically at MyMSK Clinic we offer the following:
2- Physical Therapies
We usually offer physical therapy rehab exercises or osteopathy to patients suffering from chronic elbow pain or those who have suffered an injury. Physical therapy is highly effective, speeds up the recovery process, and helps patients regain use of their arms. It is important to keep in mind to see an osteopath or physio to carry out physical therapy, as certain forms of physical therapy can cause adverse effects and keep you in pain if not performed correctly.
3- Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) Injections
PRP injections aim to inject platelets (taken from the individual’s own blood) into their elbows to rejuvenate the healing process. PRP is highly effective in treating cartilage deterioration and also promotes muscle, tendon, and ligament growth. Depending on the exact cause and severity of your elbow pain, we may recommend multiple PRP sessions to deal with the problem effectively. PRP is especially effective long term for conditions such as Golfers Elbow (Medial Epicondylitis)
4- Prolotherapy
Prolotherapy involves injecting an irritant, like dextrose solution, into the soft tissues of a joint to trigger the healing process. It is highly effective at treating chronic joint pain caused by loose or worn-down ligaments and tendons. It strengthens your tendons and ligaments that not only alleviate the elbow pain but also restore the movement of your arm.
5- Cortisone
Some conditions causing elbow pain may require a Cortisone injection. Conditions which require this include elbow bursitis and sometimes elbow Arthritis just to bring the initial pain flare up under control.
When To See A Doctor?
Ideally, you should see a doctor as soon as you experience any pain or injury. If you notice redness and swelling around the elbow, you should seek medical help immediately. Meanwhile, if it looks normal, you can try and manage elbow pain by yourself using any of the techniques we discussed above. If the pain persists even after a few hours or you have any difficulty in moving your arm, you should consult a doctor right away.
With this in mind, Dr Akhtar from the MyMSK Clinic is highly experienced Doctor and Osteopath in the Manchester and Burnley area.
If you are living in the Manchester or Burnley area in East Lancashire, MyMSK Clinic is an excellent choice for all muscle and joint related problems.
Final Thoughts:
Elbow pain is something that we experience regularly, and often especially in the initial stages it can resolve with simple treatment at home. We hope this article gives you a better understanding of what causes pain in the back of the elbow and how to treat it. It is important to remember that different treatments suit different people depending on the cause and severity of their elbow pain as well as their medical history. Therefore, clinicians such as a qualified osteopath, like Dr Akhtar, are competent enough to devise a proper assessment and treatment strategy to effectively manage your elbow pain.
If you live in Manchester or Burnley and experiencing pain in the back of the elbow, book an appointment at MyMSK Clinic to get the best medical care.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):
1. Why do I get pain in the elbow when straightening the arm?
Usually, if you overuse your arm and add extra stress to your elbow, it can lead to a burning sensation or pain while straightening your arm. Thus, it’s very important to always be careful while playing sports like tennis, golf, and weight lifting. You may also feel pain in your elbow while straightening your arm because of arthritis, cubital tunnel syndrome, or another underlying disease. It is important a through examination is performed to establish the cause of the elbow pain. This may require a scan or x ray.
2. Why do I get elbow pain when lifting?
There might be a lot of reasons behind elbow pain when lifting something. The most probable reason is that you’ve overexerted your arm by repetitive motions or lifting excessive weights. An underlying disease, injuries (even past injuries) or tendon problems can also cause pain in the elbow while lifting.
