Houston is a great city with great health facilities including orthopedic centers where tennis elbow is treated. Houston tennis elbow treatments range widely depending on the severity of the condition.
Tennis elbow refers to a condition where your elbow is damaged as a result of repetitive movements over a long span of time. The name was acquired from tennis players who are very prone to the condition.
An orthopedic surgeon is a great help when you have tennis elbow. The following are treatments that he or she is likely to suggest:
Pain Relievers
One of the effects of having tennis elbow is that the area can be affected by an excruciating amount of pain. Therefore, a doctor will most likely recommend pain medication to relieve the pain.
Pain management is a very crucial part of having tennis elbow. Pain medication, however, is only a short-term solution to pain and should not be used for long periods as it can lead to addiction.
Pain medication can either be acquired over the counter or through a prescription. The stronger pain killers are the ones that usually necessitate a prescription.
Physiotherapy
Your doctor will probably refer you to a specialist if you have a serious case of tennis elbow. The specialist in this case will be a physiotherapist.
Physiotherapists will help restore the range of motion in a debilitated or injured body part. They especially have a lot of expertise concerning the body as it pertains to movement.
A physiotherapist will typically utilize physical maneuvers and exercises to relieve the pain and restore functionality in your elbow. The exercises will serve to increase blood flow and mobility in the body part.
Physiotherapy will take a longer time than other treatments but the results are worth it.
Medical Aids
A doctor may also prescribe certain medical aids to help you when you have tennis elbow. These aids will be mostly tailored towards ensuring as little use of the elbow as possible.
A common medical aid for tennis elbow is a brace. Supportive braces take the pressure off your elbow tendons to optimize healing.
You may also use wrist splints for tennis elbow. They serve to relax the muscles and tendons in your arm.
In addition to medical aids, using more ergonomic tools at work and home will go a long way. The same applies for your sports and workout gear and equipment.
Surgery
The treatment of last resort as far as tennis elbow is concerned is surgery. It is usually used when the damage is extremely extensive.
The severity of tennis elbow can often be indicated by the amount of pain felt by the patient. Therefore, when other pain relief solutions fail, surgery is an option.
The surgery will often involve removing the damaged part of the elbow tendon. It takes several weeks to recover from the procedure.
There are other less common treatments for tennis elbow used such as steroid injections and platelet rich plasma therapy. However, the treatments listed above are the ones you will typically find at the doctor’s office.