Elbow pain

What you should know

It's quite common to develop new aches or pains from time to time, especially in the muscles, joints, or soft tissues of the body. These structures are part of what we call the musculoskeletal (MSK) system, and in most cases, discomfort in these areas settles down on its own with simple self-care.

Why do these pains happen?

Anyone can develop musculoskeletal pain - it can affect people of all ages, fitness levels, and lifestyles. As we age, natural changes occur in our tendons, joints, and soft tissues. These changes can increase our susceptibility to aches and pains.

Musculoskeletal pain often occurs without a clear injury. If you haven't had a fall or trauma, and you're otherwise feeling well, it's likely due to a minor strain or overuse.

Common triggers

Think about your recent activity:

• Have you taken on a new hobby or DIY task?
• Been gardening, walking, or on your feet more than usual?
• Lifted or moved something awkwardly?
• Have you been more sedentary than normal?

Even small changes in your routine can increase the physical load on your body. This can cause tissues to become irritated or inflamed-a common and normal response that's usually short-lived.

What you can do

Most of the time, symptoms settle with time, gentle movement, and some adjustments to your activity levels. Try to:

• Keep gently active - complete rest can make things worse
• Modify activities that aggravate symptoms - don't push through sharp or worsening pain
• Try simple, gentle exercises to support recovery
• Pace yourself and gradually build back up to your normal routine.

Some discomfort with movement or exercise is normal and usually not a cause for concern-as long as it isn't getting progressively worse and is steadily improving.

Recovery can take a few weeks, and it's not unusual for it to take up to six weeks for symptoms to fully resolve.

Simple exercises

We've included the link below to some gentle, joint-specific exercises that may help support your recovery. These can be useful for improving mobility, reducing stiffness, and supporting healing and strength rebuilding.

New elbow pain exercises

When to seek further advice

In most cases, self-management is appropriate. However, it's best to get in touch with a healthcare professional if any of these apply:

• Your pain started after a significant fall or injury
• You have severe night pain that doesn't ease with position changes or simple pain relief
• You have neurological symptoms like numbness, tingling, or muscle weakness
• You're feeling generally unwell alongside your pain - for example, if you have a fever, unexplained fatigue, or weight loss
• Your symptoms are not improving after a few weeks of self-care.

For office use only: Version 1 PFD_TS106  Publication date: August 2025

What is it?

• Pain is felt over the outside of the elbow joint. This can be constant pain or pain that comes and goes
• It is normally very tender pressing on this area
• The pain may spread down into the forearm
• This is a type of tendon pain that relates to overuse or underuse of the muscles in your forearm
• This is normally due to a change in load (increase or decrease) in the muscles in your forearm that attach at your elbow

What normally makes it worse:

• Gripping
• Carrying objects

What can I do to help myself?

• At first, try to avoid doing things that cause you pain
• Exercise can be helpful to improve your symptoms
• You could use a tennis elbow strap to reduce your symptoms
• Over the counter pain relief medication may help
• The use of heat or cold packs may help your symptoms, BUT:
• Do not apply directly on the skin
• Do not use ice longer than 10 minutes
• Do not use heat for more than 15-20minutes
• Steroid injections and surgery are rarely needed and may cause further problems in the long-term.

AskDoctorJo - Video with exercises and stretches

For office use only: Version 1 PFD_TS090(4) Publication date: April 2025

What is it?

• Pain is felt over the inside of the elbow joint. This can be constant pain or pain that comes and goes
• It is normally very tender pressing on this area
• The pain may spread down into the forearm
• This is a type of tendinopathy
• This is normally due to a change in load (increase or decrease) in the muscles in your forearm that attach at your elbow.

What normally makes it worse:

• Gripping
• Carrying objects
• moving your wrist
• Straightening your arm

What can you do?

• Avoid or reduce activities that make your symptoms worse initially
• Exercises can be used to improve the wrist flexibility and strength as well as grip strength. Ideally, we want to start off gently and slowly build up
• Try wearing a forearm strap or a wrist or elbow brace - you can buy these from pharmacies or on Amazon. This will help offload the tendon and help ease your pain. They are not however a substitute for the exercise
• Use paracetamol or rub an anti-inflammatory gel onto the affected area to help ease the pain
• Try using a hot or cold pack (or a bag of frozen peas) wrapped in a towel on the affected area for up to 10minutes a few times a day (be careful of burns, do not apply hot or cold directly on the skin)
• Steroid injections are used rarely as the evidence shows that, although there is good short-term relief, the symptoms will recur after a few months.

Ask Doctor Jo Video with exercises and stretches

For office use only: Version 1 PFD_TS090(4)  Publication date: April 2025