Athletic Training

Elbow

06/14/2008 06:18PM

Question:

My right elbow has been hurting for about 6 weeks now. The pain seems to be on the outside of the elbow. If I remember to pick up something like I am curling a weight it doesn`t hurt as much. If I pick up something with my hand opened up, much like you would pick up something with my palm facing the ground it really hurts. Any suggestions?

Answer:

It is hard to definitively answer this question with the information provided as there are several things that could be causing this type of pain. Your pain could be due to a muscle strain as there are many small muscles that act on the elbow or it could be a sprain of one of the supporting ligaments. Being that it does not hurt when you pick something up like you are curling a dumbbell, this tells me that your biceps brachii is doing the majority of the work. With your hand facing down, the brachialis or one of your pronator muscles might be weak or strained. I would highly recommend following up with your primary care physician for further treatment being that this has been going on for 6 weeks.

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Response by:

Katrina B. Stibel, MA, ATC
Assistant Athletic Trainer, Department of Athletics
Instructor
Athletic Training Division at OSU
School of Allied Medical Professions
College of Medicine
The Ohio State University