Medial epicondylitis is the medical term for golfer's elbow. It involves inflammation and pain on the inner portion of the elbow. It can appear similar to another condition called tennis elbow, but it affects the inner part of the elbow where the muscles of your forearms connect with tendons to the elbow, reports the Mayo Clinic. Golfer's elbow can affect anyone who clenches his fingers or uses his wrists in repeated motions consistently.
Numbness
The effects of golfer's elbow can spread along your arm. A symptom of medial epicondylitis is a numbing of the arm that also can affect your fingers. The numbness can include tingling and the Mayo Clinic reports, takes place most often in your little finger or your ring finger.
Pain
If you suffer from golfer's elbow, the most common symptom you may have is pain. It can affect your elbow, but it can also extend its way throughout the forearm's inner side. It also can manifest as tenderness. The pain can come upon you suddenly or it may gradually manifest over time. Pain can increase when you perform certain actions such as turning a doorknob, reaching to pick up an item with your palm facing downward, shaking hands with someone, moving the wrist in the direction of your forearm, swinging a tennis racket or a golf club, pitching a ball or squeezing a ball. In many cases, pain can be relieved by over-the-counter non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as aspirin, naproxen sodium or ibuprofen, or analgesics such as acetaminophen. If they do not help, talk with your physician about other treatments.
Stiffness
Along with numbness or pain, you also may experience stiffness in your elbow if you have medial epicondylitis. This may make it difficult to fully move your elbow as you usually would. The most common treatment for this and other symptoms of medial epicondylitis is to get enough rest, especially from activities such as golf that may have caused your golfer's elbow. Without rest, medial epicondylitis can intensify.
Weakness
The effects of medial epicondylitis also may present such symptoms as wrist and hand weakness in the arm that has the golfer's elbow. You can counteract this with exercises to strengthen and stretch the area of your body that is affected, the Mayo Clinic states.
