Prevalence of Lateral Epicondylitis among Housewives in Lahore: A Cross-sectional Study

Abstract Background Lateral epicondylitis (LE) is characterized by pain, inflammation and local tenderness over the bony prominence of lateral epicondyle and is exacerbated under stressful and repetitive movements such as prolonged supination and pronation movements, twisting and rolling activities. Lateral Epicondylitis ranks as the second most commonly diagnosed musculoskeletal condition. Females, especially housewives, are more affected by LE. It can lead to persistent elbow pain, reduced grip strength, limited arm movement, and difficulty performing daily tasks Results All of our 150 participants were women aged 25–50 years. We found that 17% (26 of 150) housewives have severe type of pain, 43% (65 of 150) have moderate pain, 30% (45 of 150) have mild pain, 9% (14 of 150) reported no pain at all according to PRTEE questionnaire. We also found that most affected part of body by pain was arm (68%) (102 of 150) while 26% (39 of 150) reported pain in both arms. Only 30.7% of women (46 of 150) reported functional limitations during specific activities, 26% (29 of 150) during usual activities, while the remaining 43.3% (65 of 150) were pain-free. Conclusion We found a high prevalence of patient-reported lateral epicondylitis among housewives with arms affected by pain most hindering functional mobility of body. Robust studies with larger sample size are needed to establish conclusive evidence.