Elbow and Wrist Pain

We use our hands for almost everything in life. There are a variety of factors which can cause elbow and wrist problems and with that is a variety of injuries that can occur. A few of the more common presentations are; tennis or golfers’ elbow formally known as lateral and medial epicondylitis. Symptoms of these conditions include the inability to grip objects, weakness, pain at the elbow joint, burning or stretching sensation and difficulty carrying objects.

Wrist problems can vary person to person, one of the main issues we see for the wrist is carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS). Symptoms of CTS include pain within the palm of the wrist, nerve sensations such as pins and needles or numbness and weakness within the hand. Other conditions include repetitive stress injuries (RSI) which can cause pain and weakness, tendonitis affecting the tendons of the wrist or overuse muscle injuries causing pain. There can be many factors that contribute to these injuries whether it be from recreational activities that we enjoy, varying jobs such as typing, desk/computer work, operators or tradies and even day to day life.

The good thing is that we can help with these injuries. Initially we will perform a thorough assessment to identify what is happening and why, we then try to settle the acute symptoms down. The next step is to create an exercise program designed to regain strength and range of movement ultimately preventing recurrences through task modification, self-management strategies and increasing the tolerance of the injured structures to the demands placed on them in your specific situation.