Consequently, proper diagnosis and treatment need to take into account the physiological differences between these two tissues.
Common Elbow Injuries:
Many elbow injuries are the result of repetitive occupational or sports activities, though specific symptoms vary from case to case. Most often, these injuries are best characterized as a “tendinosis” – as opposed to a tendon”itis”. The major distinction is that there is relatively little to no actual inflammation involved in the lesion; rather, it is more akin to a traumatic or degenerative disruption of the tendon’s attachment site (the “enthesis”) to the joint bone.
In some cases, elbow dysfunction may also be related to a shoulder injury – so a clear diagnosis is critical.
Osteopathic Manual Therapy (OMT) can be helpful in mobilizing the elbow joint.
Elbow sprain injuries respond to Prolotherapy – especially if caught early. Prolotherapy is directed to specific elbow ligament or muscle tendon attachments – depending on clinical history and physical findings on examination and X-ray.
Particular care needs to be taken with treatment of tendinous injuries because tendons can be more sensitive to inflammatory irritation. Consequently, treatment of these injuries often requires gentler Prolotherapy over a longer course of treatments.
If the elbow injury resists standard Prolotherapy, Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) Therapy would be an appropriate next step.
The following peer-reviewed journal articles have resulted in healthcare insurance reimbursement for lateral epicondylosis (tennis elbow):
The efficacy of prolotherapy for lateral epicondylosis: a pilot study. Scarpone, M, et. al. Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine 2008 May;18(3):248-54.
The systematic review of four injection therapies for lateral epicondylosis: prolotherapy, polidocanol, whole blood and platelet rich plasma. Rabago D, et al. British Journal of Sports Medicine 2008 Nov 21.
