Golfer's Elbow

Named to pay homage to the athletes most commonly suffering this injury, golfer’s elbow is a repetitive stress injury to the inner part of the elbow. The technical term is medial epicondylitis and any repetitive activation of the finger flexors (gripping), wrist flexors, and forearm pronators can contribute to injury and pain: playing golf is not a prerequisite! All these muscles attach to the medial epicondyle and the cumulative injury that occurs from repetitive use leads to development of scar tissue in the muscle and fascia. The scar tissue contracts over time which impairs circulation and increases rigidity of the muscle: this leads to less stress being absorbed by the muscle and increased stress at the insertion at the elbow with activity and pain at the insertion point develops.  

Another common structure involved in medial epicondylitis is the ulnar collateral ligament: this ligament provides structural stability to the elbow and resists forces that would deviate the forearm away from midline. Consider a right-handed golf swing: throughout the swing and in particular when contacting the ball there is some stretch at the inside of the elbow and the muscles on the front of the forearm are gripping the club while resisting the force of the club pulling the hand and wrist backward. This is a high load on the muscles, tendons, and ligaments and the stress on these structures can damage the tissues and lead to inflammation. Active Release Techniques® breaks apart the scar tissue in the muscles, tendons, and ligaments, restoring circulation and facilitating biomechanically sound tissue healing while off-loading the insertion of the tendon and ligament at the medial epicondyle. This process also helps realign joints to further reduce strain that would precipitate recurrence of this injury.