Tennis Elbow

Wrist Extensor Pain and Treatment

Lateral Epicondylitis AKA Tennis Elbow is an injury seen in active men and women who overuse their wrist extensor muscles- and you don’t have to be a tennis player to suffer this injury. 

Hold you arm out with your palm facing down. Now extend your wrist by bringing the top of your fingers towards your elbow. That muscle that pops up on your forearm when you do this motion- those are your wrist extensor. 

There are multiple reasons why someone could develop Lateral Epicondylitis- backhand swing in tennis, improper pole planting when skiing, lifting or moving heavy objects, etc. Pain develops where your forearm wrist extensor muscles meet your elbow. The pain can be so severe that you will have to limit your activity.

So, how do we treat this injury? After a series of muscular stretching and testing, MountainFit can evaluate the severity of the injury. The initial goal of treatment is to decrease the wrist extensor muscle tightness- because less tightness means less stress on the tendon pulling on the elbow, and therefore less pain! To lengthen these muscles (decrease tightness), manual therapy/massage is a great tool. IASTM (or Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization) is a phenomenal resource as well- these are metal tools that “scrape” the muscle to get rid of tightness. Kinesio tape can also be applied to aid in muscle relaxation and bring blood to the injured area. 

Rest from your activities that bring on the pain is imperative to your recovery as well. Struggling with Lateral Epicondylitis? Schedule a session with Lexi today!