Elbow Surgeries

• Elbow joint is a hinge joint and is commonly affected because of overuse injuries.
• Elbow ligament injuries, fractures around the elbow joint, tendon injuries around elbow such as tennis elbow or golfer’s elbow are cause of morbidity in active individuals.
• Many of these pathologies can be often treated conservatively if treated in time.

Elbow dislocation:

• Elbow dislocation is a common traumatic entity & often is associated with fractures around the elbow joint. 
• Posterior elbow dislocations are common.
• A dislocated elbow has associated injuries to the collateral ligaments of the elbow.
• A dislocated elbow requires urgent attention as apart from pain, it can have associated neuro-vascular injuries.
• A closed reduction of the elbow should be performed and subsequently depending on the severity of associated injuries , patients may require ligament reconstruction, bony fracture fixation etc.

Tennis elbow:

• Tennis elbow is AKA lateral epicondylitis is a condition where patient has pain on the lateral aspect of the elbow, which increases on doing activities of wrist extension
• Tendons which are important for finger extension & wrist extension are either swollen or partially injured at the site where they get attached at the elbow.
• This is an overuse injury and hence it requires modification of activities.
• Use of orthotics such as tennis elbow brace, oral ant inflammatory medications & physiotherapy are imp initial management modalities.
• Rarely patients can present with a recalcitrant tennis elbow & then may require local injection, open or arthroscopic treatment.

Fractures around elbow:

• Fractures around the elbow includes fractures of distal humerus, proximal radius & ulna sometimes have associated ligaments injuries or dislocation.
• Prompt and early treatment of the fractures is needed, which includes anatomical reduction and fixation to promote early range of motion of the elbow.
• Some of the fractures may warrant replacing the comminuted radial head fractures

Stiff Elbow & Arthritis:

• Stiff elbow may or may not be associated with arthritis of the elbow. It can be secondary to prolong immobilization, prior surgery, rheumatoid arthritis etc.
• Patients usually present with gross restriction of the elbow range or motion, which may or may not be associated with pain.
• Early management includes medication, Physiotherapy exercises.
• If the stiffness is severe and it hampers day to day function of the patient, it may require surgical intervention such as Arthroscopic adhesiolysis or open procedures such as column procedure.

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