Golfers elbow

Golfer's elbow is a condition that causes pain around the inside bony part of the elbow and down into the forearm. You may also hear it called medial epicondylitis or medial epicondyle tendinopathy.

It most often affects the dominant arm. In many cases it's an overuse injury, caused mainly by repeated strain from tasks and activities that involve gripping again and again and moving the hand.

The name comes from golf, where this injury is common, but many other activities can cause it too.

Golfer's elbow causes pain and tenderness on the inside of your elbow, and the pain may spread down your forearm. It can lead to:

• difficulty with gripping.
• difficulty with twisting movements such as opening jars.
• restriction in movement at the elbow.
• tenderness when touching the area.

Golfer's elbow symptoms develop when there's a problem with the tendons around the elbow. These tendons help with gripping activities.

Activities that involve the use of these tendons can include:

• gripping
• writing
• lifting
• pulling
• twisting

Using the muscles that help bend your wrist and fingers again and again can cause changes to the tendon, often because the tendon is overloaded.

Other factors that can affect tendon health include:

• smoking
• obesity
• high fat diet
• high cholesterol levels
• diabetes (Type 1 and 2)

To diagnose golfer's elbow, a doctor needs to assess you. They'll start by asking about your elbow problem, then examine it. This may include checking how far you can move the joint and how strong it is.

Sometimes you may need a further examination, so the doctor can rule out other health conditions.

If certain movements make your golfer's elbow pain worse, try to cut down on them by changing how you do things. You can do this by:

• changing how you grip or lift an object.
• reducing the weight you are carrying.
• taking regular breaks while doing the activities that aggravate the pain.

Along with changing your activities, you should also start exercising your elbow.

Painkillers can help you move more comfortably, and that in turn helps you manage your symptoms.

Some people with golfer's elbow find an elbow support, sometimes called an epiclasp, helpful for the pain. Research suggests these supports may be useful in the short term, but the evidence for using them is limited.

If exercise, changing your activities and painkillers aren't controlling the pain, your doctor may talk to you about a corticosteroid injection into your elbow. However, current evidence shows limited benefit for this type of condition, and the injection may harm the health of your tendon.

Corticosteroids are medicines that help reduce pain and inflammation. They may also be given with a local anaesthetic.

Injections won't cure your condition. They are used to help with the pain.

Golfer's elbow can sometimes mean you need to take some time off work so you can recover. How long you stay off will depend on your condition and on the kind of work you do.

You don't need to be free of symptoms before you think about going back. Carrying on at work, or returning as soon as you're able, will help your recovery.

Getting back to your normal daily activities bit by bit can help you build up your strength and stamina.

If you follow this advice, you should see golfer's elbow get better gradually over time.

Talk to a doctor if:

• your symptoms haven't improved within 6 weeks of following this advice
• your symptoms get worse

Ask about MSK (musculoskeletal) services near you.

With any health condition, it's worth looking after your mental wellbeing too, because it can affect how well you recover.