IMMEDIATE EFFECTIVENESS OF STRAIN – COUNTERSTRAIN TECHNIQUE IN PATIENTS WITH LATERAL EPICONDYLITIS - A PILOT STUDY

Background: Lateral epicondylitis, or tennis elbow is a common condition that presents with pain and tenderness around common extensors origin of the elbow. It affects 1-3% of adult population annually, mainly in dominant hand. Tennis elbow is described by pain, discomfort and tenderness across the lateral epicondyle of the humerus. Strain counterstrain technique is a positional technique aimed at relieving musculoskeletal pain and dysfunction through indirect manual manipulation. Objective: To investigate the immediate effectiveness of strain counterstrain technique on pain in patients with lateral epicondylitis. Methodology: In this study, 11 patients with lateral epicondylitis were selected based on inclusion criteria and exclusion criteria. All the patients received strain counterstrain technique on tenderpoint around lateral epicondyle of elbow. Informed written consent was taken before starting the treatment. Pre and post intervention assessment was taken by Numeric pain rating scale (NPRS). Results: Based on comparison of pre post mean measures of NPRS of the patients, this study proves that strain counterstrain technique was significantly effective in reducing pain in patients with lateral epicondylitis. Conclusion: The conclusion of this study is based on the comparison of pre post mean of Numerical Pain Rating Scale of the patients which concluded that there is significant reduction in-terms of pain in patients with Lateral Epicondylitis. Keywords: Strain counterstrain, Lateral epicondylitis, Tennis elbow, Tender point, Pain.