Do I have baseball tendonitis?

July 6, 2007 9:30 AM

At the age of 7, I started developing my throwing abilities. By the age of 16, I could throw really well, but soon after, discovered that if I threw my hardest, I'd develop a pain near my elbow. This pain recurs even if I don't throw for years, and then throw one or two hard shots.

When I was a kid, we used to play a game where we'd have two teams on either end of the school yard, and we'd toss a tennis ball back and forth. Mimicking one of my classmates, I developed a motion that maximized power, and quickly became very adept at throwing a tennis ball. I then moved onto stones, and for the next few years, I'd throw about 50 times a day at maximum force.

One day, at the age of 17 or so, while throwing around a softball, I noticed a pain develop behind my elbow, where the tricep connects. The pain was spread over an area that extended a few inches up the tricep.

I stopped throwing soon after.

Nowadays, even when I rest my arm for years without throwing at all, I get that exact same pain when I throw my hardest (or serve my hardest in tennis).

Is tendonitis a likely diagnosis?

Any chance I'll ever be able to throw consistently hard without pain?

(I'll go see a sports medicine doctor soon, but want to probe here for info).

posted by spacediver to health & fitness (8 comments total)

Tendonitis is unlikely, because the pain returns after a long layoff. More likely a partial (or complete) tear, bone spurs, etc. You'll need to see a doc, and surgery is a possibility.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 9:57 AM on July 6, 2007

Interesting. Would a tear be consistent with the fact that I'm able to perform non explosive activity without pain? (I do weighted dips with close to 100 lb around my belt without any pain).

However, I did get a similar pain when doing tricep extensions, though I can't remember if it was in both arms or just the throwing arm (right arm).
posted by spacediver at 10:29 AM on July 6, 2007

tommy johns
posted by alkupe at 10:36 AM on July 6, 2007

My first thought was Tommy John as well - could be ligament damage from the torque on your elbow from throwing. IANAD but it's not likely to be tendinitis if you still have the pain years later.

Can you pinpoint a specific time when the elbow started hurting?
posted by PFL at 10:40 AM on July 6, 2007

first time i remember getting the pain was about age 16-17 if i remember correctly. This was after almost a decade of me throwing at my hardest consistently on almost a daily basis.

I was throwing a baseball at around 70 mph at age 15 (i never played baseball, but broke the monthly record at the ontario science centre where the speed of the pitch was measured)

I also used to arm wrestle a lot during those same years, so maybe that contributed - not sure tho.

from what I could tell, Tommy John = Ulnar collateral ligament right?

If it were a ligament (bone to bone connection), why would my tricep muscle hurt also? Could there be associated nerves which "bleed pain" into the muscle area?

Wouldn't tendon (bone to muscle connection) damage be more likely?
posted by spacediver at 12:15 PM on July 6, 2007

Tendonitis is really, really unlikely. It's an overuse injury and would likely start up when you weren't throwing as well.

I don't know anything about ball-sports (give me a 5k and I'm happy), but it seems like you've always been throwing on your own, with what 'felt right.' Maybe it's a throwing form problem? You could ask a friend whether you're doing the righ thing.
posted by tmcw at 1:29 PM on July 6, 2007

yeah, TJ = ulnar collateral ligament. That was my first thought because throwing injuries to the elbow always bring that to mind. Position players need TJ surgery from time to time so it does happen to non-pitchers as well.

I didn't read that it was triceps pain but pain where the triceps meets the elbow. Again, IANAD so I don't know what that means but I took it as elbow pain.

I imagine a mild tear of the ligament could have those symptoms. A severe/complete tear would be more painful.
posted by PFL at 3:33 PM on July 6, 2007

Thing is, ligaments heal over time, don't they? I know for sure I've gone for years at a time without stressing that area...

Maybe it never healed properly - almost like the "blueprint" for molecular reconstruction is itself flawed...
posted by spacediver at 3:45 PM on July 6, 2007