Elbow bursitis

[Roger Kunkel]

Just when I got my sore wrists under control...

I've just been introduced to this problem. Woke up with a fluid sack on the tip of my right elbow. I'm icing and taking ibuprofin. I'll see my doc soon. Any one else wrestling with this issue?

Thanks

[Gutbucket]

I have one that developes on my wrist when I play a long time. The doctor shrugged it off and said it would probably just come back if it was drained. My dad had the same thing going on. He played the drums. Guess it's a musician ailment.

[mandroid]

... you will love Arthritis, then, ... happy birthday..

[Roger Kunkel]

Sounds like it goes with the territory. So far, I know I should rest it, wrap it, and ice it. Any other tips are sorely appreciated.

Thanks for the responses.

[Tim Bowen]

Start taking Glucosamine supplements. You can get them at drug stores and grocery stores, over the counter. At first I thought it was a hoax, but it takes a while for the body to absorb. After about three months, I started to notice some alleviation of the pain. Oh, and if you don't already do so, drink water all day long.

I have arthritis, bursitis, carpal tunnel, and permanent nerve damage in my right arm and hand. For the working player, this truly sucks! I actually had to quit playing for a couple of years, but there's a lot to be said for 'mind over matter', and the human body/mind does find ways to mask pain and compensate over time. Also, there's car and house notes, and utilities to pay, so work is work.

I do weekly acoustic duo jobs that are typically four hours long, and from a physical standpoint, quite a bit of the material is fairly aggressive. I keep a 'roll on' bottle of "Bio Freeze" (or a generic equivalent) in my car, and I'll usually ice down my arms before a show, and if they're wigging on me, between sets. After a four hour acoustic job, I usually keep this bottle near me for the next day as well. The roll-on format is pretty cool, as it dries fairly quickly without creating a big goopy mess, and after a small period of time, the aroma is not overwhelming.

I'm certainly not a general advocate of steroids, but I gotta work. I can count on having rather severe problems a couple of times per year, and when this rears its ugly head, I'll do a staggered-dosage Prednisone treatment, which allows me to take enough edge off of the pain to work and stay in the game, until the symptoms are manageable.

[BlueMountain]

What's next? As Loudon Wainwright once sang,

Oh you'd not pout, and you'd better not cry--
The Grim Reaper is coming to town, and I just might die!

("Unrequited to the Nth Degree")

[TNFrank]

Start taking Glucosamine supplements.

+1 and start taking extra vitiman D and calcium too. Believe it or not a lack of D can really make you ache. Here's a link.
http://www.westonaprice.org/basicnut...ndmiracle.html
I didn't know what was going on with my muscels and joints and neither did the doctors until I had a blood test come back with low D. I've been on 50,000 IU for about 4 months now and feel like my ol' self again.

[Jim]

I would take a good look at diet in general as your symptoms are a little like Gout. People with glutin allergies and dairy allergies have symptoms much as you describe as well.
good luck. In my house Ibuprofin is known as "I be broken"

[bshpmark]

I am by no means a doctor but have been having elbow problems for some time now so I have run the gamut on this. If the pain is on the outside you have what is called "tennis elbow." If it is on the inside you have "golfer's elbow." I have the latter and unfortunately it is not from playing golf. I get the swelling and pain quite often and am in about my fourth month of the latest spell. Here's some things that have helped me:

Get a tennis elbow band and wear it. It helps keep the tendons and muscles tightened.

The joint supplements definitely help.

The roll-on pain relievers like Bio-Freeze or Active-On are a big help.

You may just need the fluid sack drained. You may also need a cortisone shot but there are risks with that so your doc may not want to do that. The last one I got only provided relief for about 3 days. So I have just gone to the elbow band and the roll-on pain relivers.

There are some hand and wrist exercises that you can do that will help the situation.

[Roger Kunkel]

I really appreciate the responses, thanks.

So far my problem is pretty minor, but I'm hoping to keep it that way.

[Tom C]

Quote: "if it is on the inside you have golfer's elbow.

I've gotten that when I have not even changed my routine but did golf often.And it's gone away just unexplainably too. My doctor told me to take golfing lessons
It never stopped me from playing as I would feel the pain after putting down the mando. It was harder shifting gears while driving. Now I am dealing with tendinitis in my left pinky.

[UsuallyPickin]

Well People THanks for the medical insights and advice... I have similar problems ... dr. administered cortisone works for me.. hurts like the devil lasts about six months...I understand that there is a rule of diminishing returns on the timetable.... I haven't tried the glucosamine supplements.. I will thanks again R/

[Dagger Gordon]

I had what I believe was this condition about 2 years ago.

I went on a course of antibiotics from the doc, and it went away. It then returned for a while, but disappeared after another course of antibiotics. I don't know what medecine he gave me, but brand names might be different in Scotland, where I live.

I should say that I generally don't have terribly great faith in doctors for this kind of thing, but I have to admit that it did seem to work.

I haven't been troubled with it at all for well over a year. I didn't get it drained.

[mishima]

Ask your Doc for a referal to see a physical therapist ultrasound with or without hydrocortisone relieves inflammation, swelling, and pain.

Mike

[MojoMando]

I got myself into a bit of trouble by being lazy. I would play my guitar/mando/uke while laying down watching tv. Now that I am healthy again, I will never play any instrument without perfect posture.