Golfer's Elbow - desperate for some good advice!

[J13]

going through this myself and all of the above it good advice. Rest and rehab are most important but as for inflammation I’ve found Celebrex to be the best and it’s clinically shown to be easier on your body than ibuprofen. Downside is you need a script so have to see a doc.

im going to do a write up about my journey but tennis and golfers elbow is a mother***er

[Sean2]

I had it so bad, I couldn't pick up a glass of water and was sidelined for almost 3 months. Rest and Theraband helped, but what worked best was switching to graphite shafts.

[xkilgorextroutx]

Rest, Theraband, and lots of stretches/exercises.

I moved back to graphite shafts and that helped as well, but seriously - your body is injured. You need to REST and allow your arm to heal. There's no two ways about it.

[Neurotica]

1). Stop any activity!

2). See a doctor and make sure there is no damage.

3). Follow doctor orders to recover and or maintain future health.

4). Switch to graphite iron shafts.

 

I did this and was advised to use a theraband for PT and also switch to graphite shafts. Problem solved!

 

Good luck!

[Muffy]

I’ve had both tennis and golfers elbow (from golf). Rest or moderating exercise, PT or message (messaging the point of pain on the elbow, any muscle knots on the forearm, as well as general cross-muscle message on the forearms, stretching), Theraband (I had to start with yellow my forearms were so weakened by the tendinitis).

i haven’t tried those handgun message devices, but that is next.

Typing and use of keyboards using a bent wrist adds to the muscle fatigue.

Rest alone is slower than active recovery (using all the above).

[i*windows]

its simple.

REST is Best!

You need to stop doing whatever is causing pain, this is gripping a golf club. If you use a mouse at work then get an ergonomic mouse, this will help immensely. If you do not stop the pain will not go away. Depending on the damage that is done then it could take 2 weeks to 6 months to get better. It is a very difficult injury to self diagnose, so if possible see a doctor If that is not possible then just stop playing golf.

After you have rested then you need to strengthen, both the hands and the muscles in the forearms.

Then you need to think about thicker grips and graphite shafts

 

[nealkb]

Possibly try another steroid injection. Also consider a tendon strap with a bubble for the elbow.

I’ve seen a few people who benefited from a PRP injection to the elbow/condyles it’s expensive tho, but it works

 

[TrendingLower2]

I wear a wrist brace when sleeping, as recommended by both my ortho and PT. Apparently most people bend their wrists when sleeping, and wearing the brace alleviates pressure (but use only when sleeping as wearing it too much can lead to other issues). It does help, along with rest, self deep tissue massage, stretching, and eventually strengthening. It is frustrating, painful and can take months to heal.

[rgk5]

Get graphite shafts or face this.

 

 

 

 

 

[rgk5]

Sorry, picture did no load. I'll try again. Oops, still will not work. Red/blue bruising right around the entire elbow. Cured by graphite and one non-steriod injection.

 

 

 

[Hawkeye77]

Sitting on a decision right now about PRP vs. surgery - unfortunately it's one or the other or both for my tennis elbow. Third cortisone shot finally wearing off, pain coming back in all it's former glory and can't put off decision much longer. So hard not to let golf drive it. I've read a lot of good and a lot of not so good about PRP, same with surgery so as always it's up to trusting the doctor, but I am getting a second opinion after Xmas. Can't let golf drive the decision, I know that, but if I go the PRP route it will be a good 6-8 weeks or more before I really know if it is even potentially "the" answer and if not, by the time I know for sure it isn't, then I'm looking at surgery at a point where I'm going to lose most of my golf season. Not playing this year with the pain I played with two seasons ago and part of last season when the timing of my second shot got disrupted.

 

Don't envy anyone elbow issues.

[torbill]

Always better to find the root cause, and not just treat the symptoms. Sometimes the muscle connected to the inflammed tendon gets tight and pulls on the tendon, causing the condition or making it worse. If you can isolate the tendon and follow it down the arm to the midpoint of the attached muscle you might well find a trigger point, meaning a sore, hard spot, that is causing or contributing to the condition. Deep tissue massage of the muscle, along with a program of stretching the muscle, has often helped me with tendonitis. Tendons are slow. And they need rest. And until you get better you can’t be hitting 100 balls every other day. I do agree with others that graphite shafts can help. But they aren’t likely to be the answer, in and of themselves, and if you can find and resolve the cause you probably don’t need them. And perhaps there is something in your swing mechanics that is causing/contributing. Lots of causal possibilities.

I am old. I have been through all sorts of these things. I don’t think that there are always simple, quick answers to difficult problems like tendonitis. Tendonitis can be sort of a medical no-man’s-land, where there just isn’t a straightforward, simple solution. Sometimes we just have to try different things and hopefully find something that will work. If I had your condition and couldn’t find a solution on my own I would look for a really good sports medicine/physical medicine doc, not a primary care doc, who is likely to give generic advice. I wouldn’t pick a name from the phone book. I would check around, word of mouth, and find out who is really really good. Some of these folks have a deep understanding of the muscles and joints, can examine you and give specific, targeted advice. Also, some chiropractors have a very good understanding. Also, some deep tissue massage therapists. These are the sorts of people who know a lot about muscles and joints and have likely seen it all and can give you specific help for your situation. Good luck!

[braincramp52]

Have you tried a good chiropractor or massage therapist Hawk? I had to use both hands to pick up a pitcher of water when I was at the worst. When I went home from the chiropractor after my 4th visit in 5 weeks I picked it up with one hand and have had no problems since. That was a year and a half ago.

[rgk5]

Here is the picture.

 

[OffTheDole]

YIKES!

[KMeloney]

YES!

[i*windows]

go and seek professional advice, put your clubs away and get healthy.

[JLP_GOLF]

And i thought i had it bad - feel for your bud. Think I'm going to continue rest, stretching and start to strengthen in a few months when there is no pain. I'm also going to try chiropractor too. This thread was really helpful

[dwboston]

I'd be careful with any use of Celebrex. It's a Cox-2 inhibitor, and that whole class of drugs can have some pretty serious cardiac side effects. They were really effective at treating pain and really popular when they were released, but the side effects were really serious, and the FDA forced a black box warning on those drugs, which sharply curtailed their use. The cardiac side effects could show up early in use, and also built up over time.

[MaineMariner]

I had a bout of golfer's elbow about two years ago. Really, only two things helped: using the Therabar and not swinging a golf club for about two months.

One other weird suggestion maybe unrelated to golfer's elbow specifically (I was also having forearm issues): I switched to a trackball mouse at work and have not had any right upper extremity problems since. If you work on a computer all day like me, I would think about it.

[J13]

 

All Cox-2 inhibitors are not the same. The issues stemming from refoxcib do not apply to Celebrex which has been shown to actually be easier on the gut than Ibuprofen. Here's a link to an easy to read article but studies can also be found. But like anything, if you abuse it you will have problem, same as aspirin, aleve, ect..https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2018/04/25/605226604/fda-panel-affirms-safety-of-painkiller-celebrex

[rgk5]

That picture was from July of 2018. The swelling and discoloration vanished in 30 days and has not recurred since. I was diagnosed with a partial tear of the medial tendon a more severe tear of the lateral tendon. Both have healed nicely.

[dwboston]

I'm aware of the studies and the FDA panel ruling. The key passage from the article you linked is this:

"Many of the committee members stressed that celecoxib isn't completely safe. The study showed it can increase the chance of cardiovascular complications. But celecoxib doesn't appear to boost those odds nearly as much as Vioxx did, or apparently even as much as prescription doses of ibuprofen and naproxen, which were thought to be safer."

The prescription dose of ibuprofen is 800 mg (or the equivalent of 4 Advil pills/gels), which is a lot and shouldn't be taken regularly at that dose for long periods of time. It's super effective at pain control (I took it when I had back pain a few years ago) but also has some concerning side effects. Make whatever decision works best for you and your health, but personally I wouldn't touch a Cox-2 inhibitor.

[torbill]

Correct. The previous post was based on old information that has shown to be wrong. Pfizer did a huge retrospective study that ended a few years ago. It showed that Celebrex is as safe or safer than ibuprofen or naproxen in all key categories. I avoided it for years, but now take is when I need an NSAID.

[dwboston]

I don't want to beat a dead horse, but the study compared Celebrex to prescription doses of ibuprofen and naproxen. The distinction is important.

[J13]

 

Without us detracting from the thread too much I think we can all agree that you need to discuss any medication with your doctor hence why it's a prescription drug and not over the counter.

 

On a side note for anyone who has or will have tendon repair surgery, the latest studies show that Ibuprofen or other NSAIDS are NOT good to take post op for the first few weeks. They've been shown to have a detrimental effect in healing.

[Barfolomew]

OP are you messin with us.... you answered you're own question. You're second point you said it worked.....soooo maybe try that

[CDLgolf]

I used to have pain in both elbows and a cyst in my wrist that would flair up when i played or hit alot of balls.

I used to use only Ping clubs with cushon inserts or prosoft inserts. They helped a bit butby the end of the season I was ready for a 5 month break.

2 years ago I switched to all graphite shafts and all the pain has dissapeared. Not even a flair up any more.

I know alot of guys dont like graphite shafts but they work for me.

[Broke100]

Sorry to hear about the issue. In case you need a summary:

1) rest until cured

2) graphite shafts

I had the same issue. Never recurred after graphite shaft switch. Good luck.

[Hawkeye77]

My chiro tried a little stimulation for a bit a little over a year ago but it didn't make a difference and suggested I head for the orthopedic doc. I have not tried massage therapy so thanks for that, and some others have suggested as well, and I will definitely bring that up with the doctor in a couple of weeks. The doctor I've been seeing for the past year is suggesting PRP, and if that fails then MRI and guessing surgery next. I'm expecting to have an MRI now after almost two years of pain, 3 shots in the last 13 months and problem no better once they wear off. In fairness, the shots made it easy to golf when they "took" and pretty much no rest for the elbow. First doc recommenced was 90 miles away, so I'd just as soon get any MRI, etc. done closer to home and just see what is shown and go from there.