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Le Yantra, Spine & Sports Injury Clinic

Joints & Limbs

Tennis Elbow

pain on the outside of the elbow (lateral epicondylalgia)

Most people who get it have never held a racquet.

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No referral needed · One-to-one throughout · Treated at both clinics

A woman in a sports vest holding the outside of her elbow with a pained expression, the area highlighted in red.

Draft, awaiting clinical review

The copy on this page is written and is waiting on clinical sign-off. It carries noindex and stays out of the sitemap until a clinician reviews it and a review date is recorded, which is what makes the medical statements on it attributable.

Tennis elbow is pain on the outside of the elbow, where the tendons of the wrist extensor muscles attach. Despite the name, the large majority of people who develop it do not play tennis, it is far more commonly related to work, computer use, gripping and repetitive hand tasks.

It is a tendon problem rather than an inflammatory one, which matters for treatment: tendons respond to progressive loading, not to rest.

What it feels like

Pain on the outer elbow, often referring down the forearm. Worse with gripping, lifting with the palm down, shaking hands, or turning a key or doorknob. Weakness in grip is common and usually due to pain rather than to actual muscle loss.

Why it happens

Repetitive or sustained loading of the wrist extensor tendons beyond what they can currently tolerate. A change in activity, a new job, more computer use, DIY, a training increase, commonly precedes it.

How we treat it

The central treatment is progressive loading of the tendon. That is well supported and it is what produces lasting change. Hands-on work and other modalities help manage symptoms enough to load.

What to expect

Assessment will identify the specific tendon involved and check that the pain is not coming from the neck, which can refer to the elbow.

You will be given a loading programme. It is not complicated but it does need doing consistently, this is a condition where the home programme matters more than the clinic sessions.

How long it takes

Tendon problems are slow. Meaningful improvement usually takes months rather than weeks, and it depends on consistent loading. Anyone promising a quick fix is overstating.

Treatments we commonly use

Which of these applies to you is decided at your assessment, not before it.

Frequently asked questions

Should I rest it?

Complete rest generally makes tendon problems worse. What helps is reducing the aggravating load while progressively loading the tendon in a controlled way.

Do those elbow straps work?

Some people find them helpful for symptoms during activity. They are a support during the return to activity, not a treatment.

Why is it taking so long?

Tendons adapt slowly. Months is normal. Consistency matters more than intensity.

Related conditions

  • Rotator Cuff Injury

    Tendinopathy through to full-thickness tears in the four muscles that stabilise the shoulder. A tear on a scan is not automatically the cause.

  • Neck Pain

    Several different problems produce similar-feeling neck pain. Working out which one you have is what determines the treatment.

Find us

Treated at both clinics

Every service runs at both our clinics, Malleshwaram and MEI Layout, monday – saturday 9 am – 9 pm · sunday & public holidays 10 am – 5 pm.

Your wellness starts here

Book an assessment at either clinic

Every treatment plan at Le Yantra starts with a full assessment, not a standard protocol.

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Monday – Saturday 9 AM – 9 PM · Sunday & public holidays 10 AM – 5 PM

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