An aching pain on the inside of your elbow may result from cubital tunnel syndrome. But the majority of symptoms manifest in the hand.
There are hundreds of nerves inside our body that take different routes to supply the many muscles and tissues of our body. It is through these nerves that movements are conducted, sensations of warmth, cold, pain, pressure, and touch are felt. One of the nerves that supply to the muscles of the hand is called the Ulnar Nerve. This nerve starts off at the shoulder and is one of the many branches of the brachial plexus. This plexus contains all the nerves that supply to the hand.
The path that the ulnar nerve takes is between the muscles and through narrow spaces in the elbow. It also pierces an intermuscular septum to reach the hands and give off its motor and sensory supply. The cubital tunnel is bounded medially by the medial epicondyle of the humerus and laterally by the olecranon process of the ulna. The limited space between these bones is where the Ulnar nerve passes.
The nerve itself has some flexibility, but due to the narrow space, it is also bound to get compressed. This compression causes severe pain and numbness in hand. This nerve compression is what is called the Cubital Tunnel Syndrome.
What Causes Cubital Tunnel Syndrome?
There are a lot of incidents that can cause cubital tunnel syndrome but most are due to sudden unintentional twists of the arm, which causes the ulnar nerve to get trapped in the small place, where it gets no room to slide. Overuse of the elbows whole pulling or reaching out due to any kind of job can also lead to the compression of the nerve. Many sports injuries are also associated with this syndrome as well as trauma. Injury to the elbow also makes it prone to getting this syndrome.
It has also been studied that patients diagnosed with arthritis, bone spurs in the elbow, or having fractures in the area also get cubital tunnel syndrome.
According to research, diabetes mellitus is also one of the driving factors contributing to the person experiencing this syndrome.
