Tennis elbow (more formally referred to as lateral epicondylitis) is caused by repetitive stress on the forearm muscles that attach on the outside of the elbow, such as racket sports, golfing, hedge clipping or typing on a keyboard.
Most doctors and articles attribute this injury to overuse, yet what many overlook is how abnormal tension on these forearm muscles has led them to tighten and develop trigger points which impede healing (1,2). This tension slows recovery.
Increased blood flow
Tennis elbow is an overuse injury to the tendons on the outside of your elbow caused by repetitive arm motion or gripping activities that lead to inflammation in tendons that connect to the bony bump (lateral epicondyle). Tennis players typically develop this condition; it can also occur as part of other occupational tasks like painting, plumbing and typing work.
Traditional treatments for tennis elbow include rest, ice, physical therapy exercises to strengthen and stretch injured muscles, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for pain management, braces or straps to support the elbow joint and anti-inflammatories as a pain reliever – these methods may offer some temporary relief, yet recovery may still take some time.
Shockwave therapy is a non-invasive alternative treatment option for tennis elbow. This therapy utilizes acoustic shockwaves to facilitate healing in damaged tissues. Studies have demonstrated that shockwave therapy significantly decreases pain while increasing grip strength compared to standard approaches.
Tennis elbow can be extremely painful to touch. Bending or twisting of the wrist will be excruciating. Signs of tennis elbow include an uncomfortable bump on the outside of the elbow (lateral epichondyle) as well as tenderness extending two cm towards your palm (tendon). Some tests such as the Mills and Cozens test can help confirm diagnosis.
Step one in treating tennis elbow is to discontinue activities that exacerbate it and wait for your injury to heal before gradually reintroducing activities that stress it again. Beware, though: many popular treatments such as massage, needles and stretching actually aggravate injuries further and cause them to tighten again – these methods might work at first glance but if you suffer from tennis elbow for any extended period these could actually do more harm than good; to alleviate fast, seek alternative solutions instead.
Relieves pain
Tennis elbow is a condition in which prolonged abnormal tension causes inflammation at the point where muscles attach to your elbow. The pain typically presents itself as a dull ache that is sometimes intensified with movement. Most treatments focus on alleviating symptoms by applying ice packs or taking anti-inflammatory drugs; these approaches provide some relief but won’t fully address your situation.
Most doctors and articles about tennis elbow depict a diagram like this and describe repetitive activities as the cause for repetitive stress on the wrist extensor muscles attached to your lateral epicondyle of your elbow, and slow healing due to scar tissue and inflammation. They blame slow healing on scar tissue formation while concealing that repeated stress causes muscles tighten up and develop trigger points (lump that causes more tension). (2)
This additional tension pulls on the lateral epicondyle and slows healing, further aggravating an already difficult situation. To make matters worse, normal tension in your forearm muscles causes other parts of your arm to tighten in response – further exacerbating an already painful situation (3)
Solution: Stop worrying about an injury and treat the muscles responsible. Massage to affected area, acupuncture, dry needling or stretching could all help, although they could potentially worsen injuries further.
While you cannot expect a complete healing in just a few sessions, vibration therapy devices have been clinically proven to relieve your discomfort while increasing grip strength and flexibility during recovery. Our vibration therapy device has been clinically shown to block pain associated with tennis elbow and reduce healing time; its portability makes regular use easy as it comes equipped with 10 pre-programmed treatment modes for quick use.
Reduces inflammation
Over time, repetitive tasks can strain the muscles that extend your wrist and fingers – leading to tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis). You may notice pain when gripping or bending your arm; tenderness over your bony bump on the outside of your elbow known as the lateral epicondyle may also occur, along with burning sensations, tingling sensations or weakness in that region of your arm.
Treatment options for tennis elbow include activity modification, ice therapy, medications and physical therapy. Unfortunately, many of these therapies fail to treat the cause of your injury and may aggravate it further; for example, stretching and exercises for tennis elbow should be avoided until after it has fully healed as they stress damaged tissue further and could even further damage tendons.
Massage therapy, acupuncture and shock wave therapy may all assist in helping you overcome tennis elbow. Shock wave treatment utilizes high-energy sound waves to break up scar tissue in the affected area while simultaneously improving blood flow to damaged tendons and decreasing inflammation.
Medical Engineering and Physics Research published a study comparing the effectiveness of Tenease to standard treatment for tennis elbow (TE). Adults diagnosed with tennis elbow were randomly assigned either standard treatment including physiotherapy, activity modification and analgesia; or standard treatment plus Tenease therapy consisting of six weeks with three 10-minute episodes daily of Tenease therapy for six weeks – primary outcome measure being Disabilities of Arm, Shoulder, Hand Score at six months; secondary outcome measures included Patient Rated Tennis Elbow Evaluation Score as well as EuroQol 5-Dimension Visual Analogue Scale at same time points.
The Tenease device is a mechanical vibrator that emits high-frequency sound waves to relieve pressure from forearm extensor muscles in your elbow joint and alleviate inflammation associated with Tense Extensor Muscle Syndrome (TEMS), as well as increase range of motion and improve range. Acupuncture may also help decrease such inflammation and tightness in forearm muscles.
Stimulates healing
Tennis elbow vibration therapy stimulates injured tendons and bone tissues by increasing blood flow and breaking up scar tissue, speeding healing while decreasing inflammation to help you continue with daily activities without pain. Furthermore, this therapy strengthens grip strength while helping prevent further injuries.
Tennis elbow, also known as lateral epicondylitis, is an overuse injury affecting your forearm’s wrist extensors that attach to the bony bump on the outside of the elbow (lateral epicondyle). Although its name comes from tennis, this overuse injury can affect anyone using their hands or wrists repeatedly such as computer users, plumbers and racquet sports players alike.
Symptoms of elbow tendonitis include tenderness and pain on the outer side of the elbow, usually around its bony bump. The discomfort may radiate down into the forearm and make it difficult or painful to shake hands, twist one’s arm or lift light objects. Doctors may suggest wearing a brace or receiving steroid injections; however these treatments aren’t effective for everyone and could have serious side effects.
At times, doctors might recommend surgery. Though this should only be used as a last resort, it’s important to recognize that even surgical procedures carry inherent risks; many athletes opt instead for shockwave therapy as a treatment solution for tennis elbow.
Shockwave therapy is a noninvasive alternative to surgery that has proven itself successful at relieving pain and increasing grip strength. Sound waves are administered directly to the injury site using devices like Fiix Elbow; this device replicates instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization (IASTM), a proven clinical therapy often utilized by physical therapists, chiropractors and massage therapists as an IASTM treatment plan; using deep linear massage strokes on affected tendons and muscles associated with tennis elbow.
Many common tennis elbow treatments actually exacerbate an already existing injury. Stretches and exercises, for instance, may shorten tissues and worsen an injury further. If your physical therapist recommends such treatments as part of their plan for healing your injury and building strength in injured tissues.
