Hit the Links Pain-Free! Acupuncture for Golfer's Elbow

The weather is starting to warm up and several local golf courses are open for business. It’s time to dust off your clubs and start hitting the driving range!

The quiet and concentrated nature of golf gives the impression that it’s not a very physically demanding sport. However, there is much more physical ability required than most people think and golfers experience their fair share of injuries. A golf swing is a motion with several components that involves strength and balance from the bottoms of the feet to the top of the head. Because of this, the whole body is vulnerable to injury, and any pre-existing injuries can affect one’s swing.

What is Golfer's Elbow?

One particular injury is so prevalent in the sport that it has earned its own name. Golfer’s Elbow is an injury to the medial (closest to the midline of the body) portion of the elbow. Also known as medial epicondylitis, it is characterized by pain and inflammation at the inside of the elbow that is aggravated by flexion of the wrist and/or gripping objects with the hand. Tennis Elbow, or lateral epicondylitis, is a similar injury except that it is located on the outside of the elbow. In addition to pain and stiffness at the elbow, epicondylitis can also cause pain, weakness and numbness in the forearm, wrist, hand and fingers.

The epicondyles, the bony prominences on the inside and outside of the elbow, are where the muscles and tendons of the forearm connect to the humerus (the bone of the upper arm). Medial epicondylitis is not limited to golfers. It can occur in anyone who grips or throws with improper form such as baseball or softball players, racquet sports, painters, typists, construction workers, etc. Basically, any repetitive wrist, arm or hand motion can, over time, cause medial epicondylitis.

Treating Golfer's Elbow with acupuncture

The traditional treatment for medial epicondylitis is rest, ice and anti-inflammatory drugs. Rest is key, but if you belong to a league, have a golf tournament coming up, or don’t want to give up your weekend outings you will want to get back out on the course as fast as possible.

Acupuncture is a natural, drug-free, safe and effective treatment for Golfer’s Elbow (or any injury). Studies have shown that acupuncture stimulates the body to release endorphins, the body’s natural pain-killers. It also encourages healing by increasing circulation to the area, reducing inflammation and unblocking the stagnation of qi or energy in the affected area. More recent studies have shown through functional MRI scans of the brain that acupuncture has an effect on brain activity in the areas that regulate sensation and fear. So that means decreased pain, faster healing, and perhaps a better golf game!

Getting A Jump On Your Springtime Allergies

You may be saying to yourself "It's only March! Why is she talking about spring allergies already?" Acupuncture and herbal medicine are not only effective for the treatment of acute symptoms of allergies, but can also be used as a preventative medicine. For the prevention, or at the very least a decrease, of spring allergy symptoms it is best to start a treatment regimen two to three months in advance in order to strengthen your body's defenses. By the time peak allergy season rolls around, the body's immune system should be strong enough to defend against the influx of allergens. Preventative treatment can be as simple as one treatment a week, or every other week, and a small daily dose of herbs. Because this is an overall immune boosting treatment, it can help to prevent colds and flus as well.

In Chinese medicine, the approach to treating allergies is similar to that of treating colds and flus. Chinese medical theory believes that sickness is due to pathogens in the surrounding air entering the body when the immune system becomes compromised. Pollen, dust and mold are the pathogenic culprits the body works to defend itself from. Acupuncture and herbal medicine helps to "release the exterior" (a metaphorical term that refers to pushing pathogens out of the body) while strengthening lung and respiratory health.

While symptomatic, acupuncture can help alleviate your stuffy sinuses, itchy eyes, sneezing, and all the other irritating symptoms that come with allergies. During this time it is especially important to reduce your intake of foods that have a tendency to increase inflammation and aggravate allergy symptoms (i.e. wheat, processed sugars, dairy and alcohol).

As a sufferer of springtime allergies myself, I know exactly how miserable one can get during this time of year. Allergy medications can make you feel fuzzy-headed, drowsy and dried out. They can also have dangerous side effects when combined with other medications. Acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine are safe, natural, chemical-free and effective therapies that can combat the symptoms of spring allergies.

Treating Carpal Tunnel Syndrome with Acupuncture

Computer use has become so commonplace in our everyday lives that more and more people are developing physical complications from it. Eye strain, back and neck pain due to poor posture, and headaches from staring at a screen all day just to name a few. One of the most common injuries that results from frequent computer use is Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. CTS manifest as wrist and hand pain due to the compression of the median nerve. Numbness and tingling that spreads in to the palm and sometimes to the fingers often accompanies the pain.

What is the carpal tunnel?

The carpal tunnel is a structure of ligaments and bones at the wrist that form an opening, or a tunnel (hence the name). The median nerve, as well as several tendons, pass through this tunnel to the hand. The ligaments that form the carpal tunnel will sometimes become inflamed or irritated, causing the opening of the tunnel to narrow. The narrowing of the tunnel puts pressure on the median nerve causing a sensation of numbness in the hand and fingers. There are several ways that the carpal tunnel can become inflamed including various illnesses, obesity, pregnancy and smoking (smoking can reduce blood flow to the median nerve). Most commonly it is due to repetitive stress and overuse of the wrist. Frequent use of a keyboard or computer mouse forces your wrist in to a certain position that puts a strain on your wrist. Over time this constant strain created inflammation in the wrist and can result in Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

How can carpal tunnel be treated with acupuncture?

Treatment options include NSAIDs (such as Advil, Tylenol, etc.), rest, ice and splinting to help keep the wrist in a neutral position. If the problem is chronic and all other treatments have failed, surgery is sometimes suggested to help widen the carpal tunnel. For some the surgery is a permanent solution, but for many the wrist becomes inflamed again over time and the CTS symptoms come back.

Acupuncture can safely and effectively resolve Carpal Tunnel Syndrome by encouraging circulation and unblocking the affected acupuncture meridians. According to Chinese medical theory, there is a network of meridians, or channels, that run through the body. Running through these channels is something known as “Qi”. Qi is best described and visualized as the body’s internal energy. The sensation of pain and/or numbness is a result of a blockage of the flow of Qi. By resolving the blockage, Qi can flow freely and the pain disappears.

As some of you know, in addition to private practice I am also affiliated with Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital and am serving as an acupuncturist for a research study on Carpal Tunnel Syndrome conducted by researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital. This study uses functional MRI brain imaging to study the effects of acupuncture on CTS and pain. The study is on-going and is always accepting new subjects.

If you or someone you know suffers from Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, or any hand/wrist pain, there is a natural and safe alternative to drugs and surgery in acupuncture!

Phalen’s Test for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Not all wrist pain or hand numbness is due to Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and patients are very often misdiagnosed with having CTS. True CTS is the compression of the median nerve by the carpal tunnel. Pain and numbness in the arms, hands or fingers can also stem from compression of nerves or blood vessels in the neck (cervical vertebrae), the shoulder (brachial plexus) or the elbow. A simple orthopedic test for CTS is called the Phalen’s Test: Hold the back sides of your hands together with your elbows out. Hold this position for 60 seconds. If this recreates the pain and numbness symptoms that you have been experiencing then there is a good chance that you may have Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.