How Long Does It Take Hamstring Injuries to Repair?

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How Long Does It Take Hamstring Injuries to Repair?

Athlete holding his hamstring

Hamstring strains can be one of those nagging injuries. Healing rates depend on the grade of injury and many other factors. Most hamstring strains will reoccur within the first year of injury if they are not rehabbed properly. It is for this reason, that you should see a physiotherapist, physical therapist and /or sports therapist for a physical assessment to minimise re-injury.

How Severe is your Hamstring Strain?

Grade I: The muscle fibres are merely overstretched, with microscopic tissue tears possible. A grade I muscular strain usually has no visible symptoms. There is pain and limited motion.

Grade II: Partial hamstring muscle tears with considerable oedema and bruising.

Grade III: Full thickness ripping of the muscle tissue, causing substantial discomfort and loss of movement, as well as swelling and bruising in the back of your leg.

Immediate management of acute hamstring strains revolve around the PRICE principle, as for all soft tissue injuries. We should Protect, Rest, Ice, Compress and Elevate. Treatment for hamstring tears must address all intrinsic and extrinsic variables that contribute to injury to limit the likelihood of recurrence. To get an accurate diagnosis and establish a comprehensive treatment program, our Physiotherapists, Physical therapists, or sports therapists will conduct a thorough history and examination.

Our team at Archview Physiotherapy Pain and Sports Injury Clinic are specialists in the field of sports injuries. To book an appointment with one of our team, please visit our website www.archviewclinic.ie or call 0141913228. Located in Ranelagh, Dublin 6.

Hamstring injuries

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Athlete holding their hamstring

Archview Physiotherapy Pain and Sports Injury Clinic has a team of skilled clinicians such as physiotherapists, physical therapists, sports therapists who specialise in sports injury treatment. One of the most common sports injuries we see in the clinic are hamstrings.

Hamstring injuries are an extremely common soft tissue injury seen in field sports such as hockey, football, hurling, soccer, and rugby. Some research suggests that injured hamstrings account for as much as 17-25% of all GAA injuries at inter-county level. Runners, footballers, and even brisk walkers are all susceptible to injuring their hamstring.

Symptoms:

A hamstring strain can cause a variety of symptoms. These include:

  • Pain in the back of your thigh, either behind your knee, in the muscle belly, or near your buttock
  • Difficulty fully straightening your knee without pain
  • Difficulty taking large steps or walking quickly, or pain with climbing stairs
  • Difficulty and pain with running

Risk of hamstring injuries:

  • Prolonged sitting postures – e.g., desk job, driving
  • Muscle imbalance – weak gluteal muscles and/or hamstrings
  • Reduced flexibility
  • Inadequate warm up 
  • Reduced fitness level

If you feel you may have a hamstring strain or injury and would like to arrange a consultation with one of our physiotherapists or sports therapists, please call 014913228 or book online via our website www.archviewclinic.ie Located in Ranelagh, Dublin 6.

Sports Massage

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sports massage

Sports massage is a hands-on technique used by our therapists at Archview Physiotherapy Clinic, Ranelagh. It involves applying pressure to your muscles by using different stroke techniques in a kneading-like motion. This form of massage can be highly beneficial to many people. There is a common misconception that this only applies to professional athletes. This could not be any more misleading! You can enjoy the many benefits even if you do not play any sports. In fact, if your role involves a lot of sitting down, a sports massage might be the very thing you need!

When to get a sports massage?

If you are suffering from tight and sore muscles, a sports massage might be a perfect remedy for your issues.

What conditions can be helped?

  • Sore muscles
  • Pain & aches
  • Headaches
  • Pain reduction
  • Recovery
  • Injury prevention
  • Reduced stress levels
  • Post-race/workout recovery

Is sports massage painful?

Your therapist will use varying techniques to achieve reduced muscle tension and improved muscle flexibility. They will vary between medium to deep pressure, but our therapists will work with you to ensure that the experience is a pleasant one so do not worry we will work around your own preference and pain threshold.

Benefits include:

  • Improved blood circulation
  • Increased muscle flexibility
  • Improved joint range of movement.
  • Improved tissue quality and reduced muscle tension
  • Relaxation and recovery
  • Improved performance

To book an appointment with one of our massage therapy team at Archview Physiotherapy Pain and Sports Injury Clinic, please call 014913228 or book online www.archviewclinic.ie.

Pelvic Malalignment

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Written by Amanda Olsen

Did you know that your pelvis can go out of alignment? It occurs more often than you’d think, and can be a cause of certain ailments/pain OR can be the result of other issues occurring in your body.

A general overview of the anatomy of the pelvis…
– The pelvis, or “the pelvic girdle” is made up of three components: the two hip bones (the ilia), the sacrum, and the coccyx (your tail bone).
– The area where the sacrum meets the hip bone (ilia) is called the sacroiliac joint (dimples at low back).
o This is the most common place for dysfunction to occur in the pelvis – this joint can also refer pain into the low back
– These three components are held together by many ligaments and muscles

What happens?
– Whether due to a sudden traumatic experience (i.e. car crash, landing forcefully on one leg) or a prolonged onset from muscle imbalances, the pelvis can become mal-aligned
– The different types of mal-alignment are:
o Upslip: one hip is higher than the other
o Forward/backward rotation: one side of pelvis is either more forwards or more backwards than the other side
o Inflare/Outflare: one side of pelvis either flares out from mid-line more or more towards mid-line more than the other side
o Leg Length Discrepancy: one leg may be longer than the other because of a forward rotation of the pelvis on the side of the longer leg
o Sacral torsion: the sacrum is tilted or rotated more to one side

Signs & Symptoms:
– Pain at site of sacroiliac joint (dimples of low back)
– Low back pain
– Buttock pain
– Feeling “off kilter” or “out of balance”

How physiotherapy can help:
– Your physiotherapist will carry out several tests and measures to determine if you have a pelvic mal-alignment that could be causing your current symptoms
– If a mal-alignment is confirmed, the following things can be done for it:
o Muscle Energy Techniques: there are a few, but the one specific to your findings is the one that will be used – this helps get the pelvis back into alignment
o Dry Needling: if muscle tightness is causing the mal-alignment then dry needling will help loosen it out and its hold on the pelvis will be released
o Trigger point/myofascial release: alternative to dry needling where the therapist’s hands are loosening out the muscle and connective tissue around it
o Exercises: specific exercises will be given to you based on what the findings are, and are tailored to keep the pelvis in its corrected alignment

Having a pelvic mal-alignment can create a knock-on effect to the back, hips, knees, and feet. So if you are experiencing any of these, it’s possible that your pelvis needs to be corrected!

Pelvic bones
Pelvic mal-alignment
Skeleton mal-aligned