Symptoms are usually confined to pain around the elbow sometimes spreading down the forearm and pain when lifting or grasping objects. In some cases the pain appears very suddenly and in others it increases gradually and comes and goes before getting more frequent. Both men and women are affected and it usually begins to occur in people over the age of 35 getting more common as you get older. Approximately a third of sufferers develop tennis elbow in their dominant arm. 

It can be hard be completely confirm that you definitely have tennis elbow as x-rays and MRI scans rarely reveal anything. There are a few other explanations for a painful elbow including a weak joint or elbow arthritis. However, once you have explained your symptoms and a doctor has examined your elbow he or she will be able to give you a diagnosis. 

Once you know you are suffering from tennis elbow you can begin treating it and making modifications to your lifestyle. Rest your arm for a while to give the tendons some time to repair, take anti-inflammatory medicine, do special exercises to strengthen the area and If you are tennis player you can make sure your racquet is of the optimal weight and size. A common and often successful treatment is a cortisone injection. If one treatment doesn’t work try one of the other options and normally patients eventually find a treatment that work for them. A small percentage of people end up requiring surgery but this is quite an extreme and last resort.