Overhead elbow sports injuries are a group of pathologies seen in sports activities with overhead throwing or strokes, e.g. tennis, volleyball, baseball, javelin throwing. There has been a tremendous increase in the number of participants in these sports activities worldwide.
Pathology
During the mid-to-late arm swing, tremendous forces are generated over the elbow as the elbow shifts into hyperextension and valgus positioning. Excessive forces tend to affect specific components of the joint:
- medial elbow: tensile forces can damage the ulnar collateral ligament, flexor-pronator muscle mass, or ulnar nerve
- posterior compartment: shear forces can damage the articular cartilage and cause an olecranon fracture
- lateral elbow: compressive forces can cause radiocapitellar contusion, fracture, or osteochondritis dissecans (in skeletally immature patients)
Elbow injuries commonly associated with overhead sports are as follows: