BACK TOTOP Browse A-ZSearchBrowse A-ZABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ0-9 E-mail FormEmail ResultsName:Email address:Recipients Name:Recipients address:Message: Print-FriendlyBookmarksbookmarks-menuElbow painPain - elbow This article describes pain or other discomfort in the elbow that is not related to direct injury. Causes Elbow pain can be caused by many problems. A common cause in adults is tendinitis. This is inflammation and injury to the tendons, which are tissues that attach muscle to bone.TendinitisTendons are the fibrous structures that join muscles to bones. When these tendons become swollen or inflamed, it is called tendinitis. In many case...Read Article Now Book Mark Article People who play racquet sports are most likely to injure the tendons on the outside of the elbow. This condition is commonly called tennis elbow. Golfers are more likely to injure the tendons on the inside of the elbow.Tennis elbowTennis elbow is soreness or pain on the outside (lateral) side of the upper arm near the elbow.Read Article Now Book Mark Article Tendons on the inside of the elbowMedial epicondylitis is soreness or pain on the inside of the lower arm near the elbow. It is commonly called golfer's elbow.Read Article Now Book Mark Article Related video goes here for no-HTML5 browsersOther common causes of elbow tendinitis are gardening, playing baseball, using a screwdriver, or overusing your wrist and arm.Young children commonly develop nursemaid elbow, which often occurs when someone is pulling on their straightened arm. The bones are stretched apart momentarily and a ligament slips in between. It becomes trapped when the bones try to snap back into place. As a result, the child will usually quietly refuse to use the arm, but often cries out when they try to bend or straighten the elbow. This condition is also called an elbow subluxation (a partial dislocation). This often gets better on its own when the ligament slips back into place. Surgery or diagnostic tests are usually not needed.Nursemaid elbowNursemaid's elbow is a dislocation of a bone in the elbow called the radius. Dislocation means the bone slips out of its normal position. The injury...Read Article Now Book Mark Article DislocationA dislocation is a disruption of the normal position of the ends of two or more bones where they meet at a joint. A joint is the place where two bon...Read Article Now Book Mark Article Other common causes of elbow pain are:Bursitis -- inflammation of a fluid-filled cushion beneath the skin BursitisBursitis is the swelling and irritation of a bursa. A bursa is a fluid-filled sac that acts as a cushion between muscles, tendons, and bones....Read Article Now Book Mark Article Arthritis -- narrowing of the joint space and loss of cartilage in the elbow ArthritisArthritis is inflammation or degeneration of one or more joints. A joint is the area where 2 bones meet. There are more than 100 different types of...Read Article Now Book Mark Article Elbow strains StrainsA strain is when a muscle is stretched too much and part of it tears. It is also called a pulled muscle. A strain is a painful injury. It can be c...Read Article Now Book Mark Article Infection of the elbow Tendon tears -- biceps rupture Home Care Gently try to move the elbow and increase your range of motion. If this hurts or you cannot move the elbow, contact your health care provider. When to Contact a Medical Professional Contact your provider if:You have a prolonged case of tendinitis that doesn't improve with home care. The pain is due to a direct elbow injury. There is obvious deformity. You can't use or move the elbow. You have fever or swelling and redness of your elbow. Your elbow is locked and can't straighten or bend. A child has elbow pain. There is a lot of swelling and bruising around the elbow. What to Expect at Your Office Visit Your provider will examine you and carefully check your elbow. You will be asked about your medical history and symptoms such as:Are both elbows affected? Does the pain shift from the elbow to other joints? Is the pain over the outside bony prominence of the elbow? Did the pain begin suddenly and severely? Did the pain begin slowly and mildly and then get worse? Is the pain getting better on its own? Did the pain begin after an injury? What makes the pain better or worse? Is there pain that goes from the elbow down to the hand?Treatment depends on the cause, but may involve:Physical therapy Antibiotics Corticosteroid shots Manipulation Pain medicine Surgery (last resort)Open ReferencesReferencesClark NJ, Elhassan BT. Elbow diagnosis and decision making. In: Miller MD, Thompson SR, eds. DeLee Drez & Miller's Orthopaedic Sports Medicine. 5th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2020:chap 58.Hotchkiss RN. Treatment of the stiff elbow. In: Wolfe SW, Pederson WC, Kozin SH, Cohen MS. Green's Operative Hand Surgery. 8th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2022:chap 24.Lazinski M, Lazinski M, Fedorczyk JM. Clinical examination of the elbow. In: Skirven TM, Osterman AL, Fedorczyk JM, Amadio PC, Feldscher SB, Shin EK, eds. Rehabilitation of the Hand and Upper Extremity. 7th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2021:chap 7.AllVideoImagesTogSelf Care Elbow sprain - aftercareRadial head fracture - aftercareRelated Information Review Date: 8/27/2024 Reviewed By: C. Benjamin Ma, MD, Professor, Chief, Sports Medicine and Shoulder Service, UCSF Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, San Francisco, CA. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team. The information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed medical professional should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. Links to other sites are provided for information only -- they do not constitute endorsements of those other sites. No warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, is made as to the accuracy, reliability, timeliness, or correctness of any translations made by a third-party service of the information provided herein into any other language. © 1997- A.D.A.M., a business unit of Ebix, Inc. 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Elbow painPain - elbow This article describes pain or other discomfort in the elbow that is not related to direct injury. Causes Elbow pain can be caused by many problems. A common cause in adults is tendinitis. This is inflammation and injury to the tendons, which are tissues that attach muscle to bone.TendinitisTendons are the fibrous structures that join muscles to bones. When these tendons become swollen or inflamed, it is called tendinitis. In many case...Read Article Now Book Mark Article People who play racquet sports are most likely to injure the tendons on the outside of the elbow. This condition is commonly called tennis elbow. Golfers are more likely to injure the tendons on the inside of the elbow.Tennis elbowTennis elbow is soreness or pain on the outside (lateral) side of the upper arm near the elbow.Read Article Now Book Mark Article Tendons on the inside of the elbowMedial epicondylitis is soreness or pain on the inside of the lower arm near the elbow. It is commonly called golfer's elbow.Read Article Now Book Mark Article Related video goes here for no-HTML5 browsersOther common causes of elbow tendinitis are gardening, playing baseball, using a screwdriver, or overusing your wrist and arm.Young children commonly develop nursemaid elbow, which often occurs when someone is pulling on their straightened arm. The bones are stretched apart momentarily and a ligament slips in between. It becomes trapped when the bones try to snap back into place. As a result, the child will usually quietly refuse to use the arm, but often cries out when they try to bend or straighten the elbow. This condition is also called an elbow subluxation (a partial dislocation). This often gets better on its own when the ligament slips back into place. Surgery or diagnostic tests are usually not needed.Nursemaid elbowNursemaid's elbow is a dislocation of a bone in the elbow called the radius. Dislocation means the bone slips out of its normal position. The injury...Read Article Now Book Mark Article DislocationA dislocation is a disruption of the normal position of the ends of two or more bones where they meet at a joint. A joint is the place where two bon...Read Article Now Book Mark Article Other common causes of elbow pain are:Bursitis -- inflammation of a fluid-filled cushion beneath the skin BursitisBursitis is the swelling and irritation of a bursa. A bursa is a fluid-filled sac that acts as a cushion between muscles, tendons, and bones....Read Article Now Book Mark Article Arthritis -- narrowing of the joint space and loss of cartilage in the elbow ArthritisArthritis is inflammation or degeneration of one or more joints. A joint is the area where 2 bones meet. There are more than 100 different types of...Read Article Now Book Mark Article Elbow strains StrainsA strain is when a muscle is stretched too much and part of it tears. It is also called a pulled muscle. A strain is a painful injury. It can be c...Read Article Now Book Mark Article Infection of the elbow Tendon tears -- biceps rupture Home Care Gently try to move the elbow and increase your range of motion. If this hurts or you cannot move the elbow, contact your health care provider. When to Contact a Medical Professional Contact your provider if:You have a prolonged case of tendinitis that doesn't improve with home care. The pain is due to a direct elbow injury. There is obvious deformity. You can't use or move the elbow. You have fever or swelling and redness of your elbow. Your elbow is locked and can't straighten or bend. A child has elbow pain. There is a lot of swelling and bruising around the elbow. What to Expect at Your Office Visit Your provider will examine you and carefully check your elbow. You will be asked about your medical history and symptoms such as:Are both elbows affected? Does the pain shift from the elbow to other joints? Is the pain over the outside bony prominence of the elbow? Did the pain begin suddenly and severely? Did the pain begin slowly and mildly and then get worse? Is the pain getting better on its own? Did the pain begin after an injury? What makes the pain better or worse? Is there pain that goes from the elbow down to the hand?Treatment depends on the cause, but may involve:Physical therapy Antibiotics Corticosteroid shots Manipulation Pain medicine Surgery (last resort)Open ReferencesReferencesClark NJ, Elhassan BT. Elbow diagnosis and decision making. In: Miller MD, Thompson SR, eds. DeLee Drez & Miller's Orthopaedic Sports Medicine. 5th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2020:chap 58.Hotchkiss RN. Treatment of the stiff elbow. In: Wolfe SW, Pederson WC, Kozin SH, Cohen MS. Green's Operative Hand Surgery. 8th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2022:chap 24.Lazinski M, Lazinski M, Fedorczyk JM. Clinical examination of the elbow. In: Skirven TM, Osterman AL, Fedorczyk JM, Amadio PC, Feldscher SB, Shin EK, eds. Rehabilitation of the Hand and Upper Extremity. 7th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2021:chap 7.
