Why Is My Elbow Suddenly Clicking?

When you move your elbow, you’re starting to hear a clicking or popping sound. If it happens infrequently and without pain, it’s harmless. However, if your elbow is starting to hurt when you move it and you hear that click, it’s time to see a specialist.

Elbow clicks and pops, along with pain and other symptoms, can result from several types of injuries. Our board-certified orthopedic surgeons at Delta Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine promptly diagnose and treat musculoskeletal conditions, including painful elbows. 

During your appointment with Delta Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine, your doctor asks you to move your arm in a number of ways, feels your elbow and arm, and checks to see whether you have normal strength when moving the elbow. You also have an imaging test. 

Elbow conditions that can cause clicking or popping sounds

Following are common elbow conditions and injuries that can cause your elbow to click or pop when you move it. 

Elbow inflammation: tendonitis or bursitis 

Do you play tennis or another racquet sport? Do you have a job or a hobby that uses repetitive arm motions? If so, you likely have tendonitis or bursitis. Both are overuse injuries. 

Along with pain, the area of your arm around your elbow begins to swell. It gets painful to bend your arm, and your arm may feel tender or weak. If you have tendonitis, the tendons in your arm are inflamed. If you have bursitis, the bursa sac, which contains fluid that protects your elbow joint, becomes inflamed. 

Elbow arthritis

Clicking or popping in the elbow along with pain and other symptoms can signal osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis. Both can wear away the protective cartilage around your joint, leading to friction between your bones. A piece of cartilage may be torn or loose. 

Elbow instability 

Does your elbow joint feel loose? Do you hear a click or pop when you make an overhead movement with your arm? Your joint may be partially dislocated, creating elbow instability. 

Conservative treatment for elbow pain 

When your elbow is inflamed, rest and ice can calm irritated tissue. You need to take a break from repetitive motions that involve your elbow, such as a racquet sport or the type of work that has caused your condition. We provide a doctor’s note for you if your condition hinders your ability to do your job. 

If your condition is severe when you come in for your appointment, we administer a steroid injection to lessen inflammation and pain in your elbow joint. Pain medication helps as well when used on a temporary basis. If your elbow is unstable, we may prescribe a protective brace to keep your elbow stable. 

Do you have trouble brushing your teeth or grasping a cup of coffee? If your condition has caused weakness that impairs normal function, we prescribe physical therapy to help you regain normal range of motion and strength in your joint. Your therapy appointments are held conveniently right in our Collierville, Tennessee, office. 

Surgery for elbow pain 

If you have bone chips or loose cartilage that needs repair, we perform arthroscopic surgery to clear your joint and restore normal movement. For elbow instability that is due to a torn ligament, we repair or reconstruct the ligament. If you have a fracture, we use arthroscopic or open surgery to repair bones. 

Call Delta Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine in West Memphis, Arkansas, or Collierville, or book an appointment online if you have unexplained elbow pain.