Why elbows hurt

List of Partners vendors. But with the different muscles, ligaments, tendons , and bones involved in the elbow, it can be difficult to figure out exactly why your elbow hurts.

The elbow is the joint that connects your upper arm to your lower arm. While numerous tendons and muscles help stabilize and protect your elbow, the ulnar collateral ligament and the radial collateral ligament are both especially important parts of your anatomy. If you injure one of these ligaments or damage the cartilage in your elbow joint, you may experience elbow pain.

While people may benefit from learning more about the potential causes of their elbow pain, they should avoid diagnosing themselves. Instead, this article can serve as a guideline so you may better describe your pain to your healthcare provider. Olecranon bursitis is another condition often affecting one elbow.

However, some people may feel pain in both elbows. Several conditions, including but not limited to tendonitis and arthritis, can cause pain in one or both elbows. While tendonitis can cause aching pains in your elbow or throughout your arm, the condition is often temporary.

People may experience tendonitis after they overwork their elbows by scrubbing their floors by hand, playing tennis, or doing other tasks where they are repeatedly moving their elbows. Some activities may lead to both elbows becoming inflamed.

If you have tendonitis, you may find relief when you rest your arms. If your symptoms do not resolve after several days of at-home care, consider visiting a healthcare provider.

Unlike tendonitis, arthritis is a chronic condition. However, there are different types of arthritis. Rheumatoid arthritis RA is an autoimmune disease in which your immune system attacks your joints. This condition can cause swelling, pain, and stiffness in your elbows.

RA usually affects joints symmetrically, so if one elbow has symptoms, the other does as well. In your elbows, there are soft tissues that help cushion and protect your bones. These tissues normally work as shock-absorbers, allowing your joint to move without the bones painfully rubbing against each other.

If you have RA, the synovial membrane swells and thickens. You may have a smaller range of motion in your elbows. Some people with mild to moderate elbow pain may apply heat or ice packs to reduce the inflammation from their RA symptoms. Osteoarthritis is another common culprit in chronic elbow pain. It tends to affect the joint on one side first, but the other elbow may also develop it.

However, there are several options to reduce the pain and prevent further injury to the joints. If you have osteoarthritis in your elbows, the soft tissues between your bones have begun to erode. As you age, repeated movement and pressure on your joints can eventually wear away the cartilage in your elbows. Without these soft tissues to pillow your elbow, you may feel like your arm is stiff or aches. While you may not be able to rebuild or replace the lost tissues in your elbow, you can wear elbow braces and do low-impact activities to preserve the remaining cartilage.

If you are experiencing pain, you may wonder when you should consult a healthcare provider. Any pains that disrupt your life are a potential cause for medical concern and may warrant a healthcare provider visit. If you have an accident or injury that has caused sudden or severe elbow pain, consider visiting your healthcare provider. You may have dislocated or fractured your elbow, and a healthcare provider can determine the severity of your injury.

Additionally, if you have already been diagnosed with arthritis but are experiencing new, different, or worsening elbow pains, you may consider visiting your healthcare provider to manage your changing symptoms. Your general practitioner or a specialist, such as a rheumatologist, may use several different methods to diagnose the cause of your elbow pain.

A physical exam can help your healthcare provider understand where and why exactly you are hurting. The healthcare provider may feel and move your elbow, rotating your arm to pinpoint swelling, irritation, or potential injuries. They may ask you to raise your arms, bend your elbow, or clench your fists to observe your range of motion. You should stretch out your elbow at least once a day and do general range-of-movement exercises.

Your physiotherapist might also recommend biceps and triceps strengthening exercises with light weights or resistance bands. An occupational therapist can identify movements that may be causing discomfort. The pain can become worse for a few hours afterwards but then usually fades. For some conditions steroid injections can have an effect on symptoms for a short term. They can cause these conditions to be worse in the long term.

Platelets are cells in the blood that perform a number of roles, including helping the blood to clot if you cut yourself. This treatment is usually performed in hospitals by orthopaedic specialists. It involves taking a blood sample from you, which is then treated to increase the number of platelets.

This is then injected into the painful area. Recent studies have shown that PRP may reduce pain and increase movement more effectively than steroid injections. This is not yet available in all hospitals in the UK.

Most cases of elbow pain will heal using the treatments above, but a small number of people will need surgery to ease their symptoms. There are different types of elbow surgery depending on what condition you have.

There are examples of types of surgery for specific elbow conditions detailed below. If your stiffness is caused by the growth of new bone or soft tissues shortening, you may need an operation to remove the bone or release the tension in the shortened tissues.

If loose pieces of bone are causing pain, they can be removed with keyhole surgery. This type of operation is also known as arthroscopy. If necessary, bits of bone can be removed from the joint in an open surgical procedure, through a bigger incision. If arthritis of the elbow is making it difficult for you to carry on with your daily life or is causing a lot of pain and restricting your movement, an elbow replacement may be an option. Learn more about physiotherapy and arthritis, how it can help improve your mobility, ease pain and strengthen your joints.

Steroid injections are used to treat inflammatory types of arthritis. Learn how they work, how long they take, risks and side-effects. Tennis elbow is the more common of the two conditions. People who are continually gripping and twisting — for example carpenters and plasterers, or people who use a computer mouse — may be at risk.

Repetitive actions combined with weight, for example lifting heavy boxes, can also cause these problems. Tennis elbow affects tendons on the outside of the elbow.

People may also have pain when gripping. The level of pain can vary from person to person, ranging from a mild discomfort to a severe ache that prevents you from sleeping. Both conditions can last between six months and two years. Most people get better within a year. Unfortunately, they can both return. Surgery is only needed for a small number of people with these conditions.

These operations can be done using keyhole surgery or through a cut about 4 to 5 cm long. Olecranon bursitis occurs when the bursa at the back of the elbow becomes swollen and inflamed. Bursae, which is the plural for bursa, are sacs of fluid found where parts of the body move over one another, for example where tendons or ligaments pass over bones. They help cushion the area and reduce friction. The olecranon is the bony tip you can feel on your elbow.

It has a bursa between the bone and the skin. Olecranon bursitis most commonly occurs when there is pressure or friction over the back of an elbow, for example if you often lean your elbows on a chair or table. Occasionally, bacteria can cause the bursa to become infected. Olecranon bursitis often clears up on its own, but if the condition is caused by an infection, your doctor will prescribe a course of antibiotics. Resting your elbow and applying ice packs can help. This may include a healthcare professional draining fluid with a syringe.

This treatment is called aspiration. A small number of cases may need surgery if this condition keeps coming back or affects everyday activities. The operation involves removing the bursa through a cut at the back of the elbow.

Some surgeons have recently started to use keyhole surgery for this procedure. If the nerves that travel across your elbow into your forearm are squeezed or pressed on, it can cause symptoms in your forearms, wrist or hands including:. Cubital tunnel syndrome is caused by the ulnar nerve being squeezed where it passes the inside of the elbow.

This can be due to the space it passes through becoming tighter than usual. In rare cases, it can be due to arthritis. Other causes can include a fracture around the nerve which has healed into a different position or new bone growing when the fracture heals. Based on your answers, you may be able to take care of this problem at home.

When an area turns blue, very pale, or cold , it can mean that there has been a sudden change in the blood supply to the area. This can be serious. There are other reasons for colour and temperature changes. Bruises often look blue. A limb may turn blue or pale if you leave it in one position for too long, but its normal colour returns after you move it. What you are looking for is a change in how the area looks it turns blue or pale and feels it becomes cold to the touch , and this change does not go away.

It can be hard to tell how much pain a baby or toddler is in. Symptoms of infection may include:. Certain health conditions and medicines weaken the immune system's ability to fight off infection and illness. Some examples in adults are:.

Based on your answers, the problem may not improve without medical care. Based on your answers, you need emergency care. Call or other emergency services now.

Sometimes people don't want to call They may think that their symptoms aren't serious or that they can just get someone else to drive them. But based on your answers, the safest and quickest way for you to get the care you need is to call for medical transport to the hospital. Based on your answers, you may need care soon. The problem probably will not get better without medical care. Based on your answers, you may need care right away. The problem is likely to get worse without medical care.

Most minor elbow problems go away on their own. Home treatment is usually all that is needed to relieve your symptoms. Home treatment may help relieve pain, swelling, and stiffness. Talk to your child's doctor before switching back and forth between doses of acetaminophen and ibuprofen.

When you switch between two medicines, there is a chance your child will get too much medicine. Call your doctor if any of the following occur during home treatment:.

The following tips may prevent elbow problems. To prepare for your appointment, see the topic Making the Most of Your Appointment. You can help your doctor diagnose and treat your condition by being prepared to answer the following questions:. Blahd Jr. Author: Healthwise Staff. Medical Review: William H. This information does not replace the advice of a doctor.

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To learn more about Healthwise, visit Healthwise. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated. Overview At one time or another, everyone has had an elbow problem that may have caused pain or swelling. Conditions that may cause elbow symptoms Osteoarthritis may cause pain that is worse in the morning but improves during the day.

Other types of arthritis, such as rheumatoid arthritis , gout , and lupus , can also affect the elbow. A pinched nerve can cause elbow pain with numbness and tingling. A problem elsewhere in the body , such as a heart attack, can cause referred pain in the elbow. Overuse elbow problems Most people may not remember having a specific injury when their symptoms get worse over time, but overuse problems are actual injuries. Overuse injuries include: Bursitis.

Swelling behind the elbow may be olecranon bursitis Popeye elbow. Tendinosis, which is a series of microtears in the connective tissue in or around the tendon. Soreness or pain felt on the outside lateral part of the elbow may be tennis elbow lateral epicondylitis. This is the most common type of tendinopathy that affects the elbow and most often is caused by overuse of the forearm muscles. This overuse may occur during sports, such as tennis, swimming, golf, and sports involving throwing; jobs, such as carpentry or plumbing; or daily activities, such as lifting objects or gardening.

Soreness or pain in the inner medial part of the elbow may be golfer's elbow. In children who participate in sports that involve throwing, the same elbow pain may be described as Little Leaguer's elbow.

Ulnar nerve compression, which is the pinching of the ulnar nerve in the elbow joint. This usually occurs with repeated motions. Check Your Symptoms Do you have an elbow problem? This includes symptoms like pain, numbness, and trouble moving the elbow normally. How old are you? Less than 5 years. Are you male or female? Why do we ask this question? The medical assessment of symptoms is based on the body parts you have. If you are transgender or non-binary, choose the sex that matches the body parts such as ovaries, testes, prostate, breasts, penis, or vagina you now have in the area where you are having symptoms.

If you have some organs of both sexes, you may need to go through this triage tool twice once as "male" and once as "female". This will make sure that the tool asks the right questions for you. Have you injured the elbow in the past month? Have you had elbow surgery in the past month? If a cast, splint, or brace is causing the problem, follow the instructions you got about how to loosen it.

Is the arm blue, very pale, or cold and different from the other arm? If the arm is in a cast, splint, or brace, follow the instructions you got about how to loosen it. Is there any pain in the elbow? How bad is the pain on a scale of 0 to 10, if 0 is no pain and 10 is the worst pain you can imagine? Signs of pain in a baby or toddler are different than signs of pain in an older child. Has the pain:.