Elbow Tendinopathy
Article Sections
Introduction
Elbow tendinopathy is a common overuse injury involving the tendons that attach to the humeral epicondyles. The 2 main types are lateral epicondylitis, which involves the wrist extensor tendons, and medial epicondylitis, which involves the flexor-pronator tendons.
Pathogenesis and risk factors
Elbow tendinopathy is primarily a degenerative, instead of an inflammatory, process. Repetitive, forceful use of the wrist extensor or flexor muscles can lead to microtrauma at the tendon origin. This results in angiofibroblastic tendinosis, a degenerative process marked by excess fibroblasts, disorganized collagen, and neovascularization without a significant inflammatory infiltrate. Tendinosis weakens the tendon-bone junction and leads to pain, swelling, and functional impairment (). Therefore, common risk factors include a sudden increase in activity level, poor athletic technique or ergonomics, and smoking and obesity (which are linked to poor tendon healing). Figure 1
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