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nagging hamstring tear

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i tore my hamstring 10 years ago playing soccer. 3~4 months of physical therapy twice a week and I was cleared to play again, but I kept aggravating it until I finally took some time off and eventually I stopped ‘hurting it’ badly – but it was always sore after running. sometimes it was only mild, but sometimes it was quite painful. I all but quit running over the last few years (i’m 23 now) but I can still feel it every so often. when I stretch slowly, say to touch my toes, I can feel a pop where the pain has always been. not sure how accurate this is, but to make a visual description of the feeling – it is as if my muscle is ‘caught’ on something, and then pops when it releases. not sure if this may indicate a tendon issue? I was under the impression from talking to others that torn hamstrings usually recovered completely, obviously in less than 10 years. am I incorrect, or could the therapist have been incorrect? (i was initially diagnosed with a hip pointer)hoping to get to a doctor this week as i’m finally fed up with this nagging injury. but any advice would be much appreciated!thanks

2 comments

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    9 10

    If you tore your muscle significantly as in a grade 2 or 3 strain, you probably still have a good deal of scar tissue. Scar tissue is likea patch that your body uses to heal itself. Eventually through rehab, the scar tissue diminishes but is never completely gone. Scar tissue doesn’t stretch like normal muscle tissue thus the recurrent problems. Scar tissue, however, can be broken down to a very minimum by stretching, exercise, ultrasound and massage. Being this long of a time, I don’t know how much more it will break down but it is definitely worth a try. With bad hamstring tears that I have seen in the past, it has helped the athlete to stay on a maintenance program. This entails strengthening exercises at least 2 times a week for as long as they are competitive. I would stay on a stretching, strengthening and massage regimen for a couple of weeks. The best strengthening exercise that I have found is to sit on a rolling stool and pull yourself around until you are very fatigued and the hamstring is burning (we call it chair walking). Ultrasound therapy (from a PT) over the scar tissue may be beneficial as well. I wouldn’t go back to competitive sports until you can run/sprint with no pain at all. This means that your body/hamstring is ready.

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    9 10

    Mike,How did you go? Did you fix it? How?I’m suffering from a similar nagging injury and I’m very keen to fix it.Cheers,Mark

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