You don't have to be a tennis player to get tennis elbow. It’s when the tendons in the elbow become swollen. This swelling occurs when you overuse the tendons while doing activities that require repeating the same motion over and over. Although not as common, a direct blow to the elbow can also raise your chance of getting tennis elbow. Your elbow is where your humerus, the large bone in your upper arm, meets the radius and ulna, the 2 bones in your lower arm, or forearm. On either side and slightly in front of the point of your elbow, there are 2 bumps called lateral epicondyles. The medical term for tennis elbow is lateral epicondylitis.
Tennis elbow, or lateral epicondylitis, is swelling of the tendons that bend your wrist backward away from your palm. It often develops from the force of the tennis racket hitting balls in the backhand position. It can also develop from other repetitive movements.
Muscles are connected to bones by tendons, which can become inflamed and painful when the muscles are overused by repeated motion. This condition is called tendonitis. Tennis elbow is a form of tendonitis.
This condition, also called tennis elbow, is an inflammation around the bony knob (lateral epicondyle) on the outer side of the elbow. It occurs when the tissue that attaches muscle to the bone becomes irritated.