The swollen tendon causes pain. The remedy is to rest the affected body part and take nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as acetaminophen for several days to help reduce the inflammation. A related problem is tennis elbow. Officially called lateral epicondylitis, this overuse syndrome is caused by stress on the grasping muscles of the forearm. It can cause pain even when the muscles and tendons are at rest.
Treatment involves rest, ice, stretching and a lower intensity level.
Rehabilitation experts recommend exercises to strengthen the muscles and tendons of the wrist and forearm to avoid the problem. Asking muscles that have been at rest to suddenly contract quickly without warming them up is a recipe for trouble. Cold muscles aren't flexible and are more likely to tear. To avoid this, Cianci recommends warming up for five or 10 minutes with brisk walking or jogging that incorporates arm movements, such as swinging the arms in circles, then stretching all the major muscle groups thoroughly. Cianci advocates holding stretches for as long as 30 seconds without bouncing.