Hi, I'm new to this forum but thought I may be able to get some opinions/advice from people on here who are more knowledgable in the field of physiotherapy (if that's what I need?).

Anyway, the problem I have is my elbow some time causes me pain and often makes a 'crunching' type sound when I move my arm. I broke my arm about 2 years ago and ever since my arm was healed, I've been getting trouble from my elbow.

The break was quite bad, it was right next to my wrist (not sure if I broke bones or not, although I think I did, as my arm was 'out of shape') and the doctor said the break was on the growth plate, so it was crucial that they lined the bone up correctly - originally they said they'd have to give me an operation to do this, then decided they'd have a go at pulling the bone back into place by hand. They did so, x-rayed my arm and everything seemed to be where it should be so they sent me home.

I was making a recovery with my cast on and I know I shouldn't have done this but... I did - about 4 weeks into having my cast on (give or take a week) I got on my bike (favourite hobby, although I didn't break my arm on the bike!). Started jumping round on my bike, putting a bit of pressure on my arm with the cast on, although it didn't cause me any extreme pain so I carried on, stupid as I am. Rode the bike around for no more than a week then got bored and realised I was doing my arm a whole lot of bad.

Anyway, the time came for me to get my cast off. They took it off and x-rayed my arm and told me everything was dandy. Went back shortly after for a final check, to ensure everything was okay and the doctor asked me if I had any problems - only thing was that my wrist was stiff but he said that will get better with time and that it was just because my joint hadn't been used in so long.

About 2 or 3 weeks after my final check, I'm out on the bike and notice pain in my elbow. I then heard it crunch... the problem started there.

Now, in my mind, the only things I think could have possibly made my elbow the way it is are:

1. When I broke my arm, I damaged a cartlidge?
2. I damaged the elbow or didn't allow it to heal properly when I rode my bike with my cast on?

However, if it was number 2, surely when I got my final x-ray check at hospital, they'd have noticed that my arm wasn't aligned?

Oh and I think it's worth mentioning that the crunching/pain only really happens when I'm using my arm (e.g. riding the bike) or when I tense my arm (clenching my fist), holding it out and pulling it towards me (this makes me think it's a miss-alignment problem, and tendons are pulling stuff outa place, causing it to grind). Also, on the subject of aligment, when I hold out both my arms ahead of me, it's clear that the one I broke isn't exactly the same shape as the other one (right) - the ball joint seems larger on the left arm, which I broke.

So... what I'm hoping for is for someone to shed some light on what's actually causing the problem with my elbow and what I can do, if anything, to sort the problem out.

I'm really bothered by this as well, as I'm starting to go to the GYM and my elbow really prevents me enjoying myself - as well as this, I'm very active and use my arms a lot, obviously my elbow causes distress when used so it can get quite fustrating.

Thanks for reading,

Josh.

Similar Threads: