Heard about Tennis Elbow? Here is what it means and how it can be treated fast and effectively with Dry Needling.
Doctors know the condition as lateral epicondylitis. The rest of us call it “tennis elbow.”
The term has entered wide use, though only a small group of people diagnosed with tennis elbow actually get it from playing tennis.
Tennis elbow is a classic repetitive stress injury caused by overuse. Any activity that strains the muscles around the elbow over and over again can cause it.
When you constantly use your arm in a repetitive motion, the tendons at the elbow end of a certain muscle — the extensor carpi radialis brevis (ECRB) muscle may develop small tears
The tears lead to inflammation and may put stress on the rest of your arm, making it painful to lift and grip things. Left untreated, it can become chronic.
You can get it from other racquet sports, from jobs or activities that involve repetitive arm motion, such as:
- Cooking, household work like sweeping, cleaning (repetitive wrist movements)
- Carpentry (repetitive use of a chain saw)
- Writing
- Bike riding (accelerator use)
- Painting
- Carpentry
- Playing some types of musical instruments.
When dry needling is incorporated into the treatment plan, results are often seen after 2 or 3 sessions.
Dry Needling is a Physioherapy modality used to treat muscular pain and dysfunction caused by muscular trigger points.
It can relieve a range of muscle related problems through the insertion of needles into taut and contracted muscles, or trigger points, with the aim of restoring their proper functions.
Tennis Elbow is one of the problems treated by Dry Needling effective along with many others like Knee Arthritis, Piriformis pain, repititive stress pain in neck and shoulders, and many other muscle pains.
Countries like United States, Canada, Australia, South Africa, and UK have approved this technique falling under the scope of Physiotherapy.
In India a Certified Physiotherapist can practise Dry Needling.
Along with Dry Needling we may give treatment with Ultrasound, Cryotherapy, stretches and exercises to relieve the tennis elbow pain.