Elbow, wrist and arm pain may be caused by various conditions, including:

• Acute injuries. Sudden trauma pain may be due to a direct blow, penetrating injury or fall, or the accidental twisting, jerking, jamming or abnormal bending of these extremities. The pain may be sudden and severe and it may be accompanied by bruising and swelling. Acute injuries may include:
  
  
  • Bruises (contusions).
    
    
  • Sprains (injuries to ligaments), strains (injuries to muscles or tendons) or ruptures.
    
    
  • Fractures. The arms are common sites of fractures sustained in athletics. A common injury with advanced age is a Colles’ fracture of the wrist (distal radius fracture that is sustained when a person extends an arm for protection when falling down. It is not uncommon for an elderly person to have a hip fracture and a Colles’ fracture as the result of a fall.
    
    
  • Dislocations. Injuries to the joints in which the ends of the bones are forced from their normal positions. Dislocations temporarily deform and immobilize the joints.
    
    
  • Crushing injury. Can lead to compartment syndrome (a condition that occurs when the nerves and blood vessels are compressed within an enclosed space, leading to impaired blood flow as well as muscle and nerve damage).
    
    
  • Growth plate injuries. Injuries to the area of developing tissue at the end of the long bones (e.g., fingers, forearm) in growing children and adolescents. When growth is complete (sometime during adolescence), it is replaced by solid bone.
    
    
• Repetitive motion disorders. Muscular conditions that result from repeated motions performed during the course of certain jobs (e.g., assembly-line work, playing a musical instrument), sports or daily activities. These may include:
  
  
  • Bursitis. Inflammation of the bursa (small fluid-filled sac that acts like a cushion between muscles and tendons, or between muscles and bones). Often affects the areas around the joints in the shoulders, elbows or hips. With proper treatment, pain usually goes away within a week or so, but flare-ups are common (e.g., miner’s elbow).
    
    
  • Tendinitis. Inflammation of the fibrous cords that connect muscle to bone (tendons). Usually, it affects only one part of the body at a time and lasts only a short time if the area is rested (e.g., De Quervain tenosynovitis, trigger finger).
    
    
  • Tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis). Inflammation of the outer elbow. Tennis elbow typically features tendinitis but can also involve bursae, muscles and bones. Playing racket sports is only one of many activities that cause this condition.

  

  • Golfer elbow (medial epicondylitis). Inflammation of the inside of the elbow. Muscles as well as tendons can be damaged. Causes include golf, racket sports, improper technique in swimming or pitching, typing, hammering and other repetitive elbow motions.
    
    
  • Hand arm vibration syndrome (HAVS). A disorder resulting from prolonged use of certain types of vibrating tools (e.g., jackhammers, chainsaws, dental equipment). Symptoms are similar to those of carpal tunnel syndrome, and the two syndromes may occur together.
    
    
  • Focal dystonia of the hand (occupational hand cramp, writer’s cramp). A chronic condition, most common among writers and musicians, involving impaired control and muscle contractures of one or more fingers. Recent research suggests focal dystonia might involve genetics and the motor cortex of the brain.
    
    
• Pinched nerve. Entrapment or impingement of a nerve or set of nerves that may result from compression, constriction or stretching. Symptoms include numbness, “pins and needles” or burning sensations (paresthesia) and pain that radiates outward from the injured area. The part of the elbow known as the funny bone is actually not a bone but rather an area where the ulnar nerve is close to the skin. Pressure here can produce pain in the elbow or along the arm to the fingers. Many conditions can impinge nerves serving the upper limbs, including:
  
  
  • Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS). A nerve entrapment disorder that is caused by pressure on a nerve in the wrist that controls sensation and movement of some of the fingers (median nerve). Symptoms include, tingling, numbness, weakness or pain of the hands and fingers.
    
    
  • Ulnar nerve entrapment. Compression of the ulnar nerve in the arm, most often in the cubital tunnel of the elbow (cubital tunnel syndrome). Injury of the ulnar nerve may be due to sudden or repetitive trauma.
    
    
  • Cervical spinal stenosis (narrowing of the spinal canal in the neck) or herniated disc. These conditions can impinge nerves serving the arm.
    

Other conditions that can cause pain in these extremities may include:

• Arthritis. A group of more than 100 diseases that cause pain, loss of movement and swelling in the joints. Types of arthritis that affect the upper limbs include osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, pseudogout, psoriatic arthritis, Reiter’s syndrome and juvenile arthritis.

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• Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS). A poorly understood chronic pain condition in which a person may experience arm or leg pain and changes to the affected limb’s skin. CRPS is usually preceded by trauma to the limb, sometimes minor, but in some cases involves no known precipitating injury.
  

• A problem somewhere else in the body that may cause pain to radiate to the upper limb (e.g., neck injury, heart attack).
  

• Fibromyalgia. A chronic pain disorder marked by musculoskeletal aches, pain and stiffness, soft tissue tenderness, general fatigue and sleep disturbances. The pain may be confined to specific areas (e.g., neck, shoulders) early in the course of the disorder, but usually spreads to other muscle groups over time (e.g., back, arms, chest).
  

• Other disorders that can cause widespread musculoskeletal and joint pain. These include myofascial pain syndrome, lupus, sickle cell anemia, Lyme disease and myositis.
  

• Infection. Joint infections (e.g., septic or infectious arthritis) can damage cartilage and tissue within days. Bone infections such as osteomyelitis may fester for years and become debilitating if left untreated. Infection of the bursae usually occurs in the area at the tips of the elbows. All of these require prompt medical attention.
  

• Paget’s disease. Chronic disorder characterized by a rapid breakdown and abnormal regrowth of the bone’s tissues that typically results in enlarged, deformed and weakened bones.
  

• Scleroderma. An autoimmune disorder in which a buildup of collagen causes hardened or thickened skin. Scleroderma can affect the fingers, hands, arms and other parts of the body.
  

• Tumors. Bone tumors of the elbow, wrist or arm are rare. However, primary bone cancer can occur.