HAMSTRING INJURY
Hamstring injuries are common among runners, footballers and even brisk walkers. The hamstrings (muscles at the back of the thigh) work to slow down the leg as it swings forward. The risk of this injury increases with age.
How do I know that I have a hamstring injury?
- Pain or cramping at the back of the thigh.
- Pain that is aggravated by
- Bending forward
- Sitting down,
- Driving,
- Walking, jogging or sprinting
Dublin gaelic footballer Bernard Brogan, Barcelona soccer star Leo Messi and Irish rugby player Rob Kearney have all suffered with hamstring injuries of various severity in the past. With physiotherapy assessment and treatment they have all returned to play to full function.It is one of the most frequent sports injury we see here at Milltown Physiotherapy. It is also has the highest recurrence rate of any injury (Hawkings et al 2001).
Due to this high recurrence rate it is vital to get the right diagnosis, assessment and treatment from a chartered physiotherapist so as to minimise your risk of it reinjury.At Milltown Physiotherapy we not only get you back healthy following your hamstring injury but also give you a program to prevent it from happening again.
Risk of hamstring injuries
- Increased sitting down – e.g. deskjob, driving
- Muscle imbalance – weak gluteal muscles and/or hamstrings
- Reduced flexibility
- Inadequate warm up
- Reduced fitness level
How to minimise your risk of hamstring injury
An
article published by the New York times highlights some great research that has come out from Denmark on reducing your risk of hamstring injury. It is important to note that you must be injury free before beginning this program, and remember slow and steady wins the race!
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References
Hawkings, Hulse, WIlkinson, Hodson, Gibson (2001) ‘The Association Football medical research programme: an audit of injuries in professional football’.
British Journal of Sports Medicine, 35: pp. 43-47.
