- Tennis elbow is a medical condition that develops by overusing the forearm muscles and tendons.
- Tennis players are susceptible to tennis elbow but they’re not the only ones. Any task that requires repetitive motion in the forearm can cause tennis elbow.
- The good news is there are several ways you can help prevent tennis elbow from developing in the first place.
You don’t have to be Andre Agassi or Serena Williams to end up with tennis elbow. In fact, you might end up with the painful condition, which is caused by repetitive stress of the forearm, arm, and hand muscles that penetrate the elbow, even if you’ve never swung a tennis racket.
So before you shrug off that dull, chronic ache in the back of your forearm, consider these facts about tennis elbow including the common causes, symptoms, and treatment options.
What Is Tennis Elbow?
Tennis elbow, clinically known as lateral epicondylitis, is a medical condition that typically “occurs due to overusing the forearm muscles and tendons and those around the elbow joint,” explains Medical News Today. The source says, roughly 1- to 3-percent of the American population is affected by tennis elbow and it usually occurs between the ages of 30 and 50.
Don’t mistake the condition as one that only targets tennis players. Tennis elbow can strike anyone who overuses the tendons in the forearm (close to the elbow), which explains the placement of pain.