Upper limb soft tissue injury Flashcards
Lateral epicondylitis
Tennis elbow
Pain and tenderness on lateral epicondyle
Pain worse on resisted wrist extension with elbow extended or supination of the forearm with elbow extended
Episodes typically last between 6 months and 2 years
Acute pain for 6-12 weeks
Medial epicondylitis
Golfer’s elbow
Pain and tenderness localised to the medial epicondyle
Pain is aggravated by wrist flexion and pronation
Symptoms may be accompanied by numbness/ tingling in 4th and 5th finger due to ulnar nerve involvement
Radial tunnel syndrome
Most commonly due to compression of posterior interosseous branch of radial nerve
Symptoms similar to lateral epicondylitis making it difficult ti diagnose
Pain tends to be around 4-5cm distal to lateral epicondyle
Symptoms worsened by extending elbow and pronating the forearm
Cubital tunnel syndrome
Compression of the ulnar nerve
Initially intermittent tingling in 4th and 5th finger
Worse when elbow is resting on a firm surface or flexed for extended periods
Later numbness in 4th and 5th finger with associated weakness
Olecranon bursitis
Swelling over posterior aspect of elbow
May be associated may, warmth, erythema
Typically affects middle-aged male patients
Adhesive capsulitis
Frozen shoulder
Common in middle-age and diabetics
Characterised by painful, stiff movement
Limited movement in all directions with loss of external rotation and abduction in about 50% of patients
Supraspinatus tendonitis
Subacrominal impingement
Rotator cuff injury
Painful arc of abduction between 60 and 120 degrees
Tenderness over anterior acromium
Carpal tunnel syndrome
Compression of median nerve
Pain/pins and needles in thumb, index and middle finger
Tinel’s and Phalen’s sign
First corticosteroid injection and wrist splint at night
If severe/ persisting symptoms try surgical decompression
