What causes arm pain?

Many people can suffer from overuse conditions of the elbow without even knowing, such as Tennis Elbow or Golfers Elbow. Other conditions that cause arm pain include:

• Angina (reduced blood flow to the heart)
• Brachial plexus injury
• Broken arm and/or wrist
• Bursitis
• Carpal tunnel syndrome
• Cervical disc herniation
• De Quervian tenosynovitis
• Fibromyalgia
• Heart attack
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Rotator cuff injury
• Sprains
• Tendinitis 
• Nerve compression or damage
• Thoracic outlet syndrome
• Ulnar nerve entrapment

What should patients do to treat arm pain at home?

For the first 48 hours after the pain starts, patients should:

• Rest their arm and avoid using it if at all possible
• Ice the elbow for 10-20 minutes at a time
• Use wraps or gauze to tighten around the joint and increase stability

What treatments are used to help relieve arm pain?

Physical Therapy

In many cases, a physical therapist can work with patients to relieve overuse conditions without resorting to surgical options. 

The physical therapist will examine your elbow and decide if you should use a brace. Your physical therapist will then work with you by having you perform special exercises, along with any other therapies they feel appropriate for the elbow

Steroid Injections

The steroidal medication injected into a painful joint space can help soothe pain in arthritic joints. Injecting corticosteroids into an arthritic joint will not provide permanent relief on its own,  it can dramatically reduce inflammation and pain. The effects can last anywhere between 1 week to 1 year. Injections for joint pain are usually one of the steps taken before resorting to surgery. In some patients, steroid injections can reduce pain to the point where patients are able to participate in Physical Therapy, which in turn can strengthen the surrounding muscles and eliminate the need for further treatment. There are treatments available, non-surgical, and not steroid injection, that are regenerative and solutions to keep you away from surgery. schedule an appointment and ask our providers how we can help.

If you or a loved one is suffering from arm pain that can not be treated at home, schedule a consultation with one of Nextgen Wellness Group’s pain management specialists.