When Should I See a Chiropractor for Elbow Pain?

By Martha Michael

Though it’s not a weight-bearing joint, the elbow is a key player in more than just a game of tennis or a round of golf. You use it to wave, lean, hug -- even to get dressed every morning. Not overthinking it, however, doesn’t mean you don’t overuse it. Many people seek chiropractic care for elbow pain, typically due to repetitive movements on the job or swinging a racket.

Who Suffers From Elbow Pain?

Golfers and tennis players aren’t the only ones to experience significant pain in the elbow. If your work requires certain postures or a lot of arm movement, there’s a higher risk of injuries resulting in elbow pain. Studies have revealed risk factors for lateral or medial epicondylitis, sometimes referred to as tennis elbow, suitcase elbow, and baseball elbow, according to HopkinsMedicine.org. Celebrated athletes who are in better shape than most of us are not immune. Tennis players Venus Wiliams, Bjorn Borg, Andy Murray, and Aleksandra Wozniak, and football quarterback Tom Brady are among those who have been afflicted, and you can’t go a season without a baseball player suffering an elbow injury.

If you’re obese, smoke tobacco products, or engage in activities using repetitive motion or physical force, you have a greater chance of experiencing elbow pain. Your age and time spent on the job can be factors as well.

People who visit a chiropractor with tennis elbow or similar conditions come from a broad range of occupations including:

• Construction workers
• Butchers
• Painters
• Plumbers
• Machinists

What Causes Elbow Pain?

Your arm has bones, muscles, and tendons that affect performance and comfort. Muscles are connected to the bones by tendons which can become inflamed causing tendonitis, an article by Harvard Health explains. Inflammation may result from sports participation or everyday activities, such as chores or gardening. Patients with tendonitis report surges of pain from the elbow to the upper or lower arm.

You can also experience significant elbow pain due to:

• Fractures
• Bursitis
• Arthritis
• Torn ligaments
• Sprains

Golf and tennis are two sports with a strong incidence of elbow injuries, says an article on the website for The Orthopedic Institute in Ocala, Fla. There are three bones in your elbow joint -- the humerus in your upper arm, and the radius and ulna in your forearm. A network of ligaments, tendons, and muscles hold the joint in place, and damage to a forearm muscle can cause painful symptoms.

Symptoms of tennis elbow include:

• A drop in grip strength
• Burning sensation on the outside of the elbow
• Forearm pain
• Radiating pain in the shoulder

Avid golfers sometimes suffer from similar symptoms, but golfer’s elbow is the opposite of tennis elbow, says an article by the Hand and Wrist Institute. While tennis elbow is the result of damage to the lateral, or outside, part of the elbow, golfers feel pain on the inside area. The muscles you use to flex your arm are the ones affected when you develop golfer’s elbow, but people suffering from symptoms of tennis elbow experience pain when they extend their arm.

In either case, it’s a good idea to stretch and strengthen the muscles in your arm to reduce the possibility of developing one of these conditions. Playing a lot of tennis or multiple rounds of golf without proper warmup time may cause problems from overuse of your elbow.

Who’s Who of Elbow Injuries

It’s easy to see why famous athletes such as Serena Williams and Tiger Woods have endured setbacks from injuries to the elbow. Players of other sports have a risk of elbow injuries also, a fact that San Francisco 49ers fans had to accept when quarterback Brock Purdy lost his ability to pass the ball in the championship game against the Eagles. Even NFL legend Tom Brady had to sit on the sidelines when he battled lateral epicondylitis in his right arm.

When you include other professional sports the list can get … well … as long as your arm. WWE phenomenon John Cena missed some wrestling matches from repeated elbow trauma, and basketball icon Allen Iverson sported a signature sleeve on his shooting elbow. If you follow celebrity news you see that elbow injuries occur off the field and far from the court as well. Bollywood actor Ajay Devgn had tennis elbow and so did character actor James Jordan, who reached out to fans on Twitter for advice to reduce his symptoms. If you think back to many years earlier, actor George Clooney showed up in public with his arm in a sling after undergoing surgery to repair some torn tendons in his elbow.

Can a Chiropractor Help With Tennis Elbow?

Besides handling the discomfort of recurring pain due to inflammation of the elbow, you want to obtain treatment as early as possible when symptoms flare or an accident occurs. Repeated bouts of tendonitis can create scar tissue that makes it harder to treat successfully.

It’s easy to fall into the habit of reducing symptoms with shortcuts, such as over-the-counter or prescription medications for pain relief that don’t generate the healing process. Chiropractic treatment for tennis elbow addresses the cause and can involve a systematic plan of action to return pain-free function to the affected limb.

A doctor of chiropractic will examine you to determine the source of your pain. If the soft tissue is inflamed, they may use an active release technique for treatment. It’s a swift chiropractic adjustment to the arm, but you can expect some level of discomfort during the procedure. They may give you concentric strengthening exercises for your wrists and arms, or recommend you use a brace. You will also get tips to prevent tennis elbow in the future.

A routine of chiropractic care is an effective way to maximize your range of motion and prevent the onset of painful conditions. If you play tennis or suffer from the occasional golfer’s elbow, you know how important it is to maintain the health of your joints. The use of your arm goes way beyond hitting a ball over the net or onto the fairway; your elbow carries its weight every day from the time you get up to the time you go to sleep.

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