Hamstring strains

What is a hamsting strain?

Strains range from a complete rupture of the muscle to small micro-tears that the player will probably not notice at the time.

Causes
A hamstring strain commonly follows reaching for a ball, kicking and sprinting. Contributing factors include improper warm up, fatigue, poor flexibility, strength, muscle imbalance (quadriceps more powerful leaves hamstring prone to injury).

Symptoms

• A sudden sharp pain at the back of the leg
• Muscles going into spasm.
• Swelling and bruising
• If the rupture is very bad you can feel a gap in the muscle

Strains are graded 1, 2 or 3 depending on severity. A grade 1 might consist of small micro tears in the muscle. A grade 2 would be a partial tear in the muscle and grade 3 is a severe or complete rupture of the muscle.

Grade 1: symptoms

• Tightness in the thigh
• Unable to walk properly

What you can do

• Use a compression bandage or heat retainer until you feel no pain
• Ease down your training for a week or two but no need to stop completely unless you are getting pain
• See a sports injury specialist

Grade 2: symptoms

• Unable to walk properly
• Sudden twinges of pain during activity
• Swelling
• Bending the knee against resistance causes pain
• Unable to fully straighten the knee

What you can do

• Apply RICE: rest - slows down bleeding and reduces the risk of further damage; Ice - eases pain, reduces swelling, reduces bleeding initially; compression - reduces bleeding and swelling; elevation - reduces bleeding and swelling by allowing fluids to flow away from the site of injury.
• See a sports injury specialist

• Unable to walk properly without crutches
• Severe pain
• Immediate swelling

• Seek medical attention immediately.
• Apply RICE: rest - slows down bleeding and reduces the risk of further damage; Ice - eases pain, reduces swelling, reduces bleeding initially; compression - reduces bleeding and swelling; elevation - reduces bleeding and swelling by allowing fluids to flow away from the site of injury.

Health24, Ocotber 2003

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