Elbow Pain

[supercharger]

I have an problem with my elbow and was wondering if anyone has any information or has had a similar problem. It is pain on the inside of the right elbow and seems to be Golfer's Elbow. I can rub the knob of bone on the inside of my elbow and irritate what feels like a tendon. It also hurts if I flex my wrist downward and then bend and unbend my elbow.

I received a steroid shot from a doctor about 4 months ago and the pain was gone. Then just the other day, it suddenly reappeared with no warning whatsoever. I have been lifting regularly since the pain went away but haven't noticed anything specific that would have caused the pain to come back other then maybe the shot was just masking it. The pain came back when I hung from a bar to start a set of wide grip pullups. It was my first set of the day so I find it hard to believe that the pullups all of a sudden caused a strain.

I can do most excercises with only slight discomfort but I'm afraid to keep working out because it's probably not good for whatever I did to myself. I'll be going back to the doctor as soon as possible but I wondered if anyone here has any advice. I've been taking IB Profin and using ice but this gives only temperary releif. Thanks.

[Adrian7]

Do you drive a lot, or anytihng like that? It could be tendonitis, I get it sometimes and it goes away after a couple of days max.

[supercharger]

Don't know if anyone is still checking my thread, I only got one response. I do drive a lot. I commute about 1 hour each way to work. I haven't noticed the pain when I drive but that's interesting you mentioned that. I have a doctor's appt. Thursday, if I don't get any more replies, I'll probably still post some info here. Thanks!

[supercharger]

I went to my primary care physician and got a referral to an orthopedist but the doctor had some ideas for what my problem is. She thinks it looks like compression of the ulnar nerve which is the nerve that you feel when you hit your "funnybone". What I have is likely cubital tunnel syndrome and is an injury caused by repetitive motion similar to carpal tunnel syndrome.

There is a minor surgery where the ulnar nerve is moved inside the arm so that it can no longer be bumped or pinched. Hopefully it doesn't come to this but I have searched online and most people have had good luck with this surgery.

If anyone else has any information about this injury or the surgery required specifically in reference to bodybuilding please help. Thanks.

[supercharger]

Probably only talking to myself at this point, but I thought I'd give my latest update in case anyone in the future is searching for help.

I went to see an orthopedic surgeon last week and his diagnosis was medial epicondylitis, also known as golfer's elbow. This is what I originally thought I had but after it wouldn't I thought different. It can be caused by dozens of things but the most commen are gofing and throwing a baseball. My injury of the medial tendon was almost certainly caused by hardball throwing in the Summer of 2005. By continuing to work out and swim I never let the injury fully heal and it has plagued me ever since. The first steroid injection I received made it go away but it came back almost 4 months later after some intense workouts. It seems to be irritated the most by hanging from a bar doing pullups or hanging leg raises. Unfortunately, any hanging exercises are off the table for me for a while now.

The orthopedic surgeon gave me another steroid injection which had an interesting result that I thought I would share. Immediately after receiving the injection in my right elbow just above the knob of the ulna, my forearm went numb from the point of the injection to the tips of my ring and pinkie fingers. That night, I experience extreme pain in my elbow and could not bend it at all. The next day, the pain was worse and I again could not bend my elbow at all without extreme pain. For the next 5 days, the pain began to subside and after 3 days I could bend my elbow to about 90 degrees before any pain was felt. Now, 6 days later, the new pain has completely subsided and there is only a whisper of the medial tendon pain I had before.

I consulted the doctor and it turns out there is a wide range of reactions to a steroid injection depending upon the person. I fall into the less than 50% category of those who experience an increase in pain before a decrease. This has something to do with the steroid crystalizing temporarily before it begins to have a healing effect.

If anyone has a similar experience regarding medial epicondylitis please share, I'm interested in hearing about recoveries. Surgery is a last option, if my condition continues, but it is not used very often in non-professional athletes.

[narcsarge]

I have not had nearly that type of issue and I think you have done the standard treatment. My biggest suggestion is that whenever you have an injury that you need checked out by someone other then your GP physician, search for a qualified Sports Med. Doctor. The sports med gang will do all sorts of things before shooting you with steroids and cortizone. My personal bout with medial epicondylitis was just take it easy for 4 to 6 weeks. Lift weight in such a manner as to not aggravate the tendon. Once the pain subsided I worked back slowly. I know have the tendon issue on the bicep insert. Oh yea!