Tennis elbow is a painful condition where you experience severe pain in the outside region of the elbow. It is clinically known as lateral epicondylitis. The pain may occur when you overstrain the muscle and tendons around the elbow.

The signs of tennis elbow are as follows: slowly growing pain around the elbow; extreme pain while lifting objects and shaking hands; pain while using tools such as a toothbrush or knife; and pain in the upper part of the forearm.

The following are the causes of tennis elbow: overuse of the muscles of elbow and wrist; inflammation on the outside of the elbow; activities such as painting, playing a violin and all such which put repeated stress on the elbow muscles; and abrupt tearing of the muscle or the tendon surrounding the elbow.

If the tennis elbow has occurred due to repeated activity, it is better to stop that activity until your symptoms of pain are completely gone. You manage the condition at home by holding a cold compress (frozen vegetable bag) or ice pack over the affected area. You may also apply anti-inflammatory cream or ointment or take over the counter medicine. If pain persists, you should see a doctor.

The following activities put you at a greater risk of having tennis elbow: playing games such as baseball, tennis, golf, cricket; working on carpentry, garden and lawn mowing; assembly line workers; playing the violin; and vacuuming and cleaning jobs.