Elbow Fractures In Weight Lifting

Weightlifters often push their bodies to their limits in order to build muscle fast, but overtraining and using improper form can lead to painful elbow fractures. Such injuries are one of the quickest ways to put an end to your training, as they can take up to a year to heal completely. With proper treatment, you can eventually return to normal activities, but the best solution is preventing the injury in the first place.

Identification

The tip at the end of your elbow is called the olecranon. Positioned directly under the skin without much protection from muscles or other tissues, the olecranon can easily break, or fracture, from overuse or stress. Symptoms of an elbow fracture include swelling, bruising, tenderness to the touch, numbness in one or more fingers and sudden, intense pain, particularly when you try to move the elbow joint.

Causes

When the mid-third of the olecranon suffers a stress fracture during weightlifting, it's usually caused by the abnormal outward turning and the hyperextension of the elbow bone, which leads to a repeated violent pull of the triceps muscles on the olecranon. If the fracture occurs at the very tip of the olecranon, it's usually the result of violent contact on the elbow when the forearm is extended straight, like being hit by a weight or falling on the elbow.

Treatment

Emergency measures include ice, pain medications, a splint or cast and a sling to keep the elbow in proper position. If the fracture shifts in position, you may need surgery under general or local anesthesia to put the bones back together, including the use of pins, wires, screws, and plates or stitching the bone and tendons.

Rehabilitation

Avoid lifting objects with the injured arm for at least six weeks. You should be able to return to normal activities within four months, although some cases can take more than a year, especially with sports and weightlifting. It's important to start daily physical therapy exercises as soon as your doctor recommends them, or you may not regain full motion of your arm. Common types of rehab exercises include bending and straightening your elbow several times a day, rotating your palm up and down with your elbow bent at a 90-degree angle, and squeezing a tennis ball. Resistance bands may also be prescribed by your therapist.

Prevention

Learn proper techniques for each type of weightlifting move and always warm up first by walking on the treadmill and then using very light weights. Stretching is also important after warming up, and it may help to wrap the elbows, particularly during very heavy lifts. Keep your mind focused on the lift, paying particular attention to your form and breathing. Work up to the heaviest weights gradually over time and never lift more weight than is appropriate for your fitness level.