Chronic calf injury!
Hi, ive had a chronic calf injury for over 3 years which was wrongly diagnosed in the first place, Had several pairs of orthotics fitted with no major success, had an MRI scan + nerve conduction test which have not shown up anything. I am a middle distance runner and this injury came on after my first track race of the season. With a week rest it seemed to get better but would come back after my next hard track session or race. The problem gradually got worse and 3 years on its still there. The main site of the injury is about 15cm above the bottle of my heel and goes up along the lateral side of my calf. Cant be compartment syndrom as it gets worse after exercise, strains and tightens up even more the day after vigorous exercise. Anyway last year i wento to see a specialist at the British Oylmpic Medical Centre and he thought it was just a simple calf strain that had not had chance to heel properly after 3 years, So i had an Ultra Sound scan, which showed up 1 micro rupture and 1 micro tear about 5 cm above my achilles. The Dr gave me 2 sets of cortosone injects with 6 weeks in between each set of injections. However this has made things worse and now i have lots of problems walking, but before i had the injections i could still manage 2-4 miles of slow running. Anyway the Dr at the BOMC says that the injections have weakened my calfs and i should now have 2-3 months complete rest to let my injury fully heal. I agree with the diagnosis the ultra sound scan showed up, as its the only concrete evidence that has been presented to me so far as to what the injury is. Could you please give me any advice as to any things that i can do to complement the 2-3 months complete rest that i have been told to have, eg ultra sound, massage etc. What do u consider to be complete rest. Thanks very much for taking the time to to read this message!
5 comments
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I injured my left calf in a basketball game last tuesday. I’ve never had a calf injury before.I,ve had many ankle sprains and a right knee reconstruction (acl), but never a calf problem. I was shooting a free throw and felt a small pop. Then there was a slight burning sensation.It is located about halfway between my achilles and my acl. The first day after I could hardly put weight on it, but now I’m walking fairly normal except for pain if I go up on my toes. I was concerned about the achilles initially, but it feels to high up on the calf now. I’m 39 years young and would like to continue sports at the level I’m accustomed to.I’m hoping this is just a calf strain or pull. I stretch for a good 15-20 minutes prior to all activities. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Rich
Trigirl
Sounds like your problem is a complicated one! Where is “midlands” area? Midwest? If you can give me a specific state or metro area, I might be able to find something.
turls
Ps. do you know any Physio’s in the Midlands Area wow are trained in active release therapy??
turls
Thanks for your advice, just got a few more points and questions here, Firstly, when i was given the injections, I was told that they were to promote the healing process and not to hide the problem. I was told that that there was a risk that the injections could flare up the injury even more and weaken the muscle and this is was what happend in my case!!
So i was told that i should undertake 3 months complete rest as I’ve had this problem for 3 years and active recovery has not worked so far. Ok, so by completely resting, the oringinal tear in the muscle will heal, but by completely resting my calves they have tightened up! But if i do any exercise this will prevent my injury from healing, as walking only a few hundred metres can cause me slight pain. So do i need to find the right balance between complete rest and active release therapy???
Anyway at the moment im scared of doing anything on my legs as im worried that this will prevent my injury from healing.
The ultra sound scan showed that the tear was only 0.8cm in length and the rupture was 1cm in length, so this is not a massive tear.
Anyway im going back to see the specialist at the BOMC next week, so i’ll ask him about the Active Release Therapy. I also had some orthotics fitted about a year ago, becasue ive got high arches and bowed legs, so im gonna try and get these adjusted as the Dr said these were a “conservative approach” and can be adjusted futher to take more pressure off my calves.
Thanks very much for helpng me out.
Turls
Trigirl
Ok, my advice- absolutely do not get any more cortisone shots!!! Sure, you can train through your pain with them but they do not treat the underlying cause and may make your more susceptible to further injury if not complete rupture! Sounds like you have the flexor digitorum longus thing, too. I had it last year a little bit and a much decreased workout schedule and ice help a lot. Also, go get some active release therapy done. This stuff is good. It will help to break up the adhesions and such and get things healing. Look up active release therapy on the internet and I’m sure you’ll find a list of providers in your area. Nothing should keep you in pain this long- just get some proper treatment and you’ll likely be on your way! Good luck!