Elbow Surgery in Houston

You can’t raise, rotate, or use your forearm with that remarkable joint known as the elbow. Damage to the elbow’s many components can rob you of these functions, with surgery sometimes serving as the only real solution. This type of surgery calls for professional skills, tools, and expertise. That’s why you should consider NW Surgery, with its three decades of experience and sterling reputation, for your elbow surgery in Houston.

Common Elbow Conditions

Although doctors characterize the human elbow as a “hinge joint,” its structure involves many moving parts. Damage to these moving parts can cause the following conditions:

Tennis player with lateral epicondylitis holding his elbow in pain

  • Tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis) – This form of tendinitis gets its name from its association with tennis moves such as serves and returns. Overuse of forearm tendons and muscles strains these tissues where they attach to the outer side of the elbow.
  • Golfer’s elbow (medial epicondylitis) – Golfer’s elbow is similar to tennis elbow except that it involves soft tissue inflammation on the inner part of the elbow.
  • Elbow arthritis – In the most common form of elbow arthritis, osteoarthritis, the cartilage inside the elbow joint breaks up, permitting painful friction within the joint.
  • Elbow fractures – The bones that make up the elbow can fracture in a high-impact accident injury.
  • Elbow dislocation – A high-impact injury can dislocate the elbow bones even if it doesn’t produce a fracture.
  • Ulnar nerve entrapment (cubital tunnel syndrome) – In this syndrome, the ulnar nerve running through the elbow becomes pinched, impairing muscle function and causing numbness, pain, or tingling in the forearm and hand. 

Some elbow problems require nothing more than rest, immobilization, and physical therapy. However, surgery can sometimes succeed where other measures cannot. Signs you need elbow surgery include reduced range of motion, loss of grip strength, ever-worsening pain when you use the joint, and lingering stiffness when the joint is at rest.

Types of Elbow Surgery

Fortunately, modern medicine offers many state-of-the-art surgical techniques for repairing a strained, deteriorated, or damaged elbow. some common types of elbow surgery include:

Surgeon marking patients elbow before surgery

  • Bursectomy – Bursectomy involves the removal of a cushioning sac called a bursa that has grown inflamed and painful.
  • Endoscopic ulnar nerve release – Slim, specialized tools enter the elbow through tiny incisions to modify the elbow structures and decompress the ulnar nerve.
  • Ulnar nerve transposition – In this surgery, the doctor moves the ulnar nerve to a different part of the elbow to relieve compression.
  • Lateral debridement – Lateral debridement involves the removal of damaged tendon tissue in cases of tennis elbow.
  • Elbow arthroscopy – In an elbow arthroscopy, the surgeon inserts a tiny camera tube into the elbow to locate internal damage. Other special tools can then repair the damage as an outpatient procedure.

Benefits of Elbow Surgery

Any worries you might have about elbow surgery should be weighed against the considerable potential benefits. Elbow surgery can alleviate chronic pain while also restoring the joint’s former function, strength, stability, and mobility so you can return to your normal activities. Surgery can correct congenital or acquired deformities, help prevent further damage to the joint, and generally improve your quality of life.

Let NW Surgery Help You

Woman consulting a physician about getting an elbow surgery

Your elbow is in good hands here at NW Surgery. Our orthopedic clinic, widely regarded as the finest such facility in the Houston area, has been treating a wide range of joint problems for decades. Our network of world-class specialists can repair elbows, shoulders, hips, knees, and wrists while also treating spinal conditions and neuropathic symptoms. Additionally, we have our own team of pain management experts who can provide solutions above and beyond standard analgesics.

NW Surgery can even make your elbow surgery uniquely easy to pay for. Our direct pay options cover several common elbow procedures, giving you a reasonable flat rate without the hassles of health insurance paperwork.

Talk to the Elbow Surgery Experts

As you may have noticed by now, a stiff, painful, or weak elbow can make everyday life difficult or even impossible. Elbow surgery in Houston can restore full, comfortable use of your elbow once you’ve given up on non-invasive treatment options — but only if you select the right practitioner for the job. Contact NW Surgery today so we can connect you with one of our skilled, experienced elbow surgeons.