Hamstring injury Archives - Specialist Pain Physio Clinics

Part of the role of being a manager is to juggle the team according to injuries. The list of injured players in The Premiership at the moment is significant. Jose Mourhino described his list as ‘long, long’, hence the Chelsea manager is being forced to consider his options for the forthcoming games. With the ever-growing costs involved in football, questions about players’ availability are now a routine focus for interviews.

Diego Costa is struggling with a persisting hamstring injury. Leg injuries and pain are the scourge of footballer’s careers, but with a change in thinking, many of the on-going problems can be eradicated.

Certainly players work hard on their conditioning to make sure that their bodies are prepared for the rigour and vigour of the modern game. Time away from running and kicking allows for the body to adapt — muscles and the systems that control the muscles. Active rest is vital and should include a techniques that create calm in the body via the mind. We know only too well the potent influence of the mind upon the body and vice versa. Allowing a negative thought about pain or injury to take hold will affect movement and performance. But, there are effective ways of dealing with this and should be routine for both players and managers.

There is a difference between hamstring pain and a hamstring injury. The latter involves damaged tissue whereas the former does not. Everyone needs to understand this and know how to discriminate — by everyone, I mean players, medical staff and managers. With everyone knowing the facts about pain and injury, communication is open and free, meaning that any stress created by worry and concern is eliminated. One thing that is not good for pain is stress. Why? Because the body will be in protect mode, and this is not compatible with recovery.

Understanding pain and injury is the start point. From here, recovery can be planned and implemented, working with all the body systems involved with injury and pain — and that includes body awareness, sensorimotor function, immune function, autonomic function; all involved with protection. Protection is vital in the initial stage of an actual injury, but as healing takes hold, the biology of protection may need a helping hand to switch off.

Struggling to get back to football? Have a player who is struggling? Get in touch and we can work together to return him or her to play — 07518 445493

The unfortunate Thiago Motta of Italy suffered what appeared to be a hamstring injury just minutes after coming onto the pitch last night. The Euro 2012 finalists were already under severe pressure from the dominant Spanish team when he was stretchered off the field clutching the back of his thigh. The Brazilian-Italian footballer was expressing his and his nation’s agony as they eventually lost 4-0.

Hamstring injuries are common in football. Often seen as the player pulling up having been sprinting, he clutches the back of his thigh, then hopping or hitting the floor. The amount of pain can vary as in any injury as pain is not an accurate indicator of the amount of actual damage.

The hamstring group is made of three muscles situated on the back of the thigh: biceps femoris on the outside, and semimembranosus and semitendinosis on the inside. They run from the pelvis to the lower leg, bending the knee but also slowing the knee down as it straightens. It is often in this latter phase that the ‘pull’ occurs.

When the muscle is pulled it can be difficult to walk. There can be bruising and swelling in the thigh, although sometimes this is deep in the leg and therefore not immediately visible. With rupture of the muscle fibres, the blood and fluid may track down the leg, causing bruising and swelling to appear lower than the injury.

With an acute injury, ‘PRICE’ is the management strategy of choice where P is protection, R is rest, I is ice, C is compression and E is elevation. In the early stages of an injury and the healing process there is pain, redness, swelling and heat. These are all manifestations of the inflammation that starts healing. Despite the unpleasantness, the signs and symptoms are the body’s responses to injury and are normal. Seeking the advice of a health professional is advisable so that you can fully understand the problem and what you must do to facilitate the most effective recovery.

When we have recovered from the acuteness of a hamstring injury, an individualised training programme must be designed, explained and implemented by a trainer or physiotherapist. This should be followed, progressed and completed to reduce the risk of future problems in the same area. The exercises and drills become increasingly functional, rehearsing the types of movements and skills needed to perform. This routine is practiced so that the player is ready physically and mentally for the demands of the game.

It is not uncommon for a twinge or similar pain to be felt in the back of the thigh sometime after the original injury. Of course there can be a re-injury where actual muscle fibres or tissue can be damaged. However, there can equally be cases whereby it feels like the original injury but there is no actual damage. In this situation, the brain has recognised the pattern of movement, determines a potential threat and responds with a pain in the back of the thigh, more as a warning shot. This means that there is still an underlying sensitivity that may have been felt as a persisting tightness (‘my hamstrings are always tight’, I often hear) or some discomfort with running or sitting with pressure on the muscles. This low level sensitivity and tightness requires a different treatment and training approach. To determine the difference, you should see a physiotherapist or other healthcare professional who can assess your situation and advise you on a specific course of action.