What IS Tennis Elbow?
If you saw a previous post, you’ll know that very few cases of tennis elbow actually come from playing tennis! But the name has stuck just the same. It’s related to the backhand swing in tennis. Particularly if you grip the racket to hard, this repetitive stress can cause microtears in the muscles of the forearm. ‘
But any activity that strains the extensor muscles around your elbow, particularly repetitive stress, can cause “tennis elbow”. Some common activities include playing musical instruments, painting, computer work, and chopping in the kitchen.
The pain occurs on the outer elbow, where the tendons attach to the elbow, at the lateral epicondyle. The medical diagnosis is actually lateral epicondylitis.