Elbow joint pain can be quite excruciating and is often the cause for much inconvenience. The elbow is used when you perform almost any activity so any pain experienced is hard to ignore. The elbow joint is constituted of three different bones and the nerve supply is through the ulnar nerve. Since this nerve is quite intricately positioned near the joint, elbow joint pain can even lead to numbness and tingling in addition to being exceedingly agonizing. The following is a list of six different causes of elbow joint pain, as well as some measures to relieve the pain.

Causes of Elbow Pain

1) Infections

• Rheumatoid Arthritis
• Septic Arthritis
• Cellulitis
• Osteochondritis dissecans

2) Tumors of Bones of Elbow Joint

3) Injuries or Trauma to Elbow Joint leading to inflammation of the tendon

Lateral Epicondylitis

This type of injury can be caused by several different actions that your elbow is involved in like playing tennis (tennis elbow), scrubbing the windows, repetitive tightening of screws using a manual screw-driver etc. The pain is often not noticed during activity and may worsen only at the end of the day, during rest. This variety of elbow pain leaves the internal structures of the elbow joint unaffected, hence does not limit the range of motion of your elbow.

Medial Epicondylitis

This variety of elbow joint pain is often associated with activities that need repetitive twisting of the elbow joint, as in playing golf. That explains why this kind of inflammation is often described as golfer’s elbow. Similar to the lateral epicondylitis; there is no involvement of inner structures or restricted range of motion in this kind of inflammation.

Olecranon Bursitis

This could either be result of trauma or even systemic diseases like gout or rheumatoid arthritis.

4) Sprain of the Elbow Joint

5) Fracture of Elbow Joint

6) Trapping of the ulnar nerve due to swelling of the surrounding tissues in disease or trauma.

Effective Measures for Pain Relief

• The first measure to get relief from elbow pain is to use an ice pack. This will soothe the inflammation and give you effective pain relief.
• In case of disorders like Cellulitis, it is better to use heat applications.
• It is essential to provide adequate rest to the affected elbow joint and desist from indulging in strenuous activity that requires repetitive motions of the elbow.
• Chronic pain due to systemic disorders may require medical or even surgical interventions
• NSAIDs may be used to get pain relief and persistent inflammations may call for steroidal anti-inflammatory injections.
• A fracture of elbow will need placing the elbow in a sling and a cast to limit movements and help healing and union of broken bones.
• Surgical intervention involves use of arthroscopic surgery which can both detect and fix the internal issues within the affected elbow joint.

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