Ongoing hamstring problems
Discussion
Evening All. Are you sitting comfortably? Then I'll begin:
About 2.5 years ago I damaged my hamstring moving swiftly from a standing start playing hockey. It felt like a runny fried egg bursting, and a large amount of blood collected in the back of my knee. I went straight to A+E where they popped me on crutches for a couple of days and referred me to my local NHS physio. First sessions had to be light because of the extreme discomfort in moving or having pressure put on it. No scans were done.
I'm well used to sports injuries and physio, so I continued doing my own + some pilates at home to try to recover flexibility. ~6 months later I went back to the GP who referred me back to the physio. Massaging and more stretches. No scans.
~3 months later (9 months total from injury) I attended a couple of pre-season training sessions. I was never able to put in 100% and decided to sit the season out to try and recuperate further. I was afraid of doing further damage. Went back to the gym to start controlled resistance exercising. No real improvement 3 months on (1 year total). Went back to GP. More physio. Still no scan.
Continued on my own gym/stretching path, trying different methods of pushing it hard, taking it easy. Occasional small steps forward after a now total of 2 years. Finally had enough and went to see another GP. Set up MRI scan. Hope! But then...
...nothing showed up on the scan! No scar tissue, strange healing patterns...nothing!Two days later, photography at a car show (and thus lots of squats to obtain fancy pants angles). I limped for three days and could not go back to the gym for a week. Small puddle of blood at the back of the knee. Happens after every show.
Ok, history over!! Can anybody please offer some advice? Not being able to do compeitive sport, even on a sociable game of squash level, is not something I'm enjoying. I've run out of ideas from my own experience and the GPs/physios/surgeon/scanners have not found an answer. Any suggestions would be greatly appeciated!
Many thanks in advance!
Andy
PS: I've considered the phsycological factor, but it regularly pulls when I am not thinking about it at all.
About 2.5 years ago I damaged my hamstring moving swiftly from a standing start playing hockey. It felt like a runny fried egg bursting, and a large amount of blood collected in the back of my knee. I went straight to A+E where they popped me on crutches for a couple of days and referred me to my local NHS physio. First sessions had to be light because of the extreme discomfort in moving or having pressure put on it. No scans were done.
I'm well used to sports injuries and physio, so I continued doing my own + some pilates at home to try to recover flexibility. ~6 months later I went back to the GP who referred me back to the physio. Massaging and more stretches. No scans.
~3 months later (9 months total from injury) I attended a couple of pre-season training sessions. I was never able to put in 100% and decided to sit the season out to try and recuperate further. I was afraid of doing further damage. Went back to the gym to start controlled resistance exercising. No real improvement 3 months on (1 year total). Went back to GP. More physio. Still no scan.
Continued on my own gym/stretching path, trying different methods of pushing it hard, taking it easy. Occasional small steps forward after a now total of 2 years. Finally had enough and went to see another GP. Set up MRI scan. Hope! But then...
...nothing showed up on the scan! No scar tissue, strange healing patterns...nothing!Two days later, photography at a car show (and thus lots of squats to obtain fancy pants angles). I limped for three days and could not go back to the gym for a week. Small puddle of blood at the back of the knee. Happens after every show.
Ok, history over!! Can anybody please offer some advice? Not being able to do compeitive sport, even on a sociable game of squash level, is not something I'm enjoying. I've run out of ideas from my own experience and the GPs/physios/surgeon/scanners have not found an answer. Any suggestions would be greatly appeciated!
Many thanks in advance!
Andy
PS: I've considered the phsycological factor, but it regularly pulls when I am not thinking about it at all.
Sounds like a full grade 3 tear which sometimes does need operating on especially if it is at the tendon connection point.
I did my hamstring with a grade 2 about 8 weeks ago but am pretty much back to full strength now.
What did the physio do in the first 2 weeks or so? I was always told that it is the most important time when healing as the massages need to align the fibres in the muscle so they heal correctly and to stop the scar tissue forming.
I also had ultrasound/tens and various other things strapped to me once a week and I iced regularly - every few hours really - in that first 3-4 days.
From what you say it sounds like it never healed properly and is re-tearing slightly any time you put any force through it.
Did you do much movement with it after the first week or so? When I did mine I was in agony for 2-3 days then that went and after a week I could walk again. After about a week and a half I stretched religiously but also jogged and swam regularly to keep moving it. Apart from the first week I never had a time when I didn't do anything on it.
Do yo have a lump in it where the tear was still?
By the way I'm not a physio/doctor or anything but a runner so it was VERY important to me to get back to fitness as soon as possible after I tore mine.
I did my hamstring with a grade 2 about 8 weeks ago but am pretty much back to full strength now.
What did the physio do in the first 2 weeks or so? I was always told that it is the most important time when healing as the massages need to align the fibres in the muscle so they heal correctly and to stop the scar tissue forming.
I also had ultrasound/tens and various other things strapped to me once a week and I iced regularly - every few hours really - in that first 3-4 days.
From what you say it sounds like it never healed properly and is re-tearing slightly any time you put any force through it.
Did you do much movement with it after the first week or so? When I did mine I was in agony for 2-3 days then that went and after a week I could walk again. After about a week and a half I stretched religiously but also jogged and swam regularly to keep moving it. Apart from the first week I never had a time when I didn't do anything on it.
Do yo have a lump in it where the tear was still?
By the way I'm not a physio/doctor or anything but a runner so it was VERY important to me to get back to fitness as soon as possible after I tore mine.
Hi bales
Thanks for the info. In terms of massaging, I have a tennis ball that I put under it every so often when I'm sitting down and roll it around to try and break scar tissue, but then none appeared on the MRI. No obvious lump.
I have been tempted to buy/borrow a tens machine for a couple of weeks and seeing if that does anyting to help it. Increased range of movement over the first couple of weeks was 'encouraging' at the time according to the physios.
Cheers
Andy
Thanks for the info. In terms of massaging, I have a tennis ball that I put under it every so often when I'm sitting down and roll it around to try and break scar tissue, but then none appeared on the MRI. No obvious lump.
I have been tempted to buy/borrow a tens machine for a couple of weeks and seeing if that does anyting to help it. Increased range of movement over the first couple of weeks was 'encouraging' at the time according to the physios.
Cheers
Andy
Bill said:
McAndy said:
Small puddle of blood at the back of the knee.
:raises an eyebrow:Blood?? Or swelling or bruising?The usual caveats apply about interweb diagnosis... But if it's the tendon have you done any eccentric rehab exs?
And have you had an ultrasound scan?
Bruising in appearance. What do you mean by eccentric exercises please? And no US...
Andy
Nasty. Is it definitely the tendon?
I ask about US scans because MRI can miss things like small Baker's cysts.
Have a look at this for a bridging exercise: http://www.livestrong.com/article/156697-hamstring...
Use a chair for stability and lift using predominantly the good leg, lower using the injured one. The idea is that you load the tendon and encourage healing without strengthening the muscle too much. Often people do concentric work which results in the muscle getting stronger more quickly than the tendon recovers, this increases the loads the tendon is under.
Hope that makes sense.
I ask about US scans because MRI can miss things like small Baker's cysts.
Have a look at this for a bridging exercise: http://www.livestrong.com/article/156697-hamstring...
Use a chair for stability and lift using predominantly the good leg, lower using the injured one. The idea is that you load the tendon and encourage healing without strengthening the muscle too much. Often people do concentric work which results in the muscle getting stronger more quickly than the tendon recovers, this increases the loads the tendon is under.
Hope that makes sense.
I'll take a closer look over the next couple of days and start doing! I may go back to the GP and see about an ultrasound too in that case. I hadn't considered tendons as being the problem...
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