Injuries of Elbow and Forearm

The elbow facilitates the highly skilled functions of the forearm, wrist, and hand that are needed for sports. Sporting activities involving throwing, catching, hammering, pushing, pulling, and hitting with a racket produce significant stresses around the elbow joint that can result in acute and chronic injuries. Sports injuries to the elbow may involve the muscles, ligaments, tendons, capsule, bones, articular surfaces, and nerves and subsequently impair elbow function. Elbow injuries, particularly chronic overuse injuries, occur most commonly in athletes that participate in throwing or overhead activities and frequently are the result of valgus stress. Fractures usually result from a fall on the outstretched hand but can also occur due to a direct impact to the elbow. Fractures can range from simple fissures to severe open fracture dislocations. Seemingly harmless fractures with associated ligamentous injuries can result in an unstable elbow and long-term posttraumatic arthritis.