Home/Treatments/Tennis Elbow
Elbow and forearm·Gonstead method
Tennis Elbow
The burn on the outer elbow is usually a tendon that is being asked to repair slower than it is being loaded. A racquet is optional.
Understanding it
What is tennis elbow?
The tendons that lift the wrist and straighten the fingers attach on the outer bump of the elbow. Repeated gripping and wrist extension fray that attachment. Typing, a mouse, tools, and lifting with the palm down do it more often than tennis.
Left alone, the tendon can shift from a simple strain into a tired, poorly organised tendon. The neck can also sensitise the same forearm, so the exam includes the lower neck rather than only the elbow.
This page explains how a visit is organised. It is not a diagnosis. Get urgent medical care for sudden weakness, loss of bladder or bowel control, fever with spine pain, or pain after a major fall or crash.
Root patterns
What overloads the tendon
The tissue tears in tiny amounts faster than it rebuilds. These are the usual loads.
Desk and mouse work
A wrist held up for hours is a constant low load on the outer elbow tendons.
Tools
Screwdrivers, wrenches, and vibrating tools send torque straight into that attachment.
Racquet mechanics
A late backhand or a grip that is the wrong size spikes the load. This is where the name came from.
Palm-down lifting
Bags, plates, and gym moves with the palm facing the floor ask a lot of the same tendons.
The lower neck
Irritation of the nerves that supply the forearm can make the tendon easier to overload and slower to settle.
A sudden jump in use
A new sport, a renovation, or a first week back at work can outrun what the tendon has adapted to.
Progression
How the tendon changes
Soreness after use can become pain with a kettle if each stage is ignored.
01Reactive
It aches after the task and settles
The tissue is irritated and still intact. This is the easiest stage to turn around.
02Disorganised
Pain during the task, and after
Healing has been attempted and stalled. Grip starts to fade. The tendon may feel thickened.
03Worn
Light daily tasks hurt
Lifting a kettle, opening a door, or a handshake sets it off. Recovery is still realistic and usually slower.
04Tear
A pop and a wrist that will not lift
A partial or full tear needs a medical assessment. Hands-on loading plans come after that decision, not before.
Most people who come in are still in the first two stages. Waiting is what lets the tendon degenerate.
Recognition
Signs the tendon is not keeping up
Outer elbow pain past a couple of weeks, or pain that keeps returning, means the tissue is not repairing on its own.
Tender outer elbow
Burning right on the bone, worse to touch.
A weaker grip
Cups, tools, and handshakes set it off.
Lifting with the palm down
A bag or a plate from the table is the test people fail.
Wrist bent back
Resisted wrist extension reproduces the pain.
Stiff in the morning
A dull ache on waking that eases once you move.
“Laptop bag, mouse, then I could not pour. Puchong looked at the elbow and the neck together. The elbow cleared once both were in the plan.”
Visit
Where elbow pain is seen
The same concern is seen at all three branches. Pick the one that is easiest to reach.
Book
Book an assessment
Message the branch on WhatsApp.
Questions
Common questions
Yes. Repeated grip, typing, and palm-down lifting are the usual stories.