Hamstring Injury? Here's What To Do

A hamstring injury can occur if any of the tendons or muscles are stretched beyond their limit. The most common cause of pain in the posterior thigh is a hamstring strain from an acute injury. Pain can also develop following an injury that has failed to heal properly. 

 

A hamstring strain or pull is a tear to the muscle fibres in one of the three muscles, the semitendinosus, semimembranosus or biceps femoris, which make up the hamstring group at the back of the upper thigh. They run from the lower part of the pelvis and insert into the back of the shin bone and when contracting they powerfully bend the knee and extend the hip backwards. 

Acute or sudden hamstring strains usually happen in two ways; either sprinting or stretching. 

 

Hamstring strains often occur during sudden, explosive movements, such as sprinting, lunging or jumping. During sprinting, the hamstring muscles work extremely hard to decelerate the shin bone just before the foot strikes the ground, and it is at this point, the hamstring is most likely to tear. Sprint-related hamstring injuries most commonly occur lower down the thigh (in the biceps femoris muscle where the muscle joins the tendon) and often feel worse but recover more quickly. 

 

Stretch-related injuries usually occur higher at the back of the thigh in the tendon of the semimembranosus muscle and may take longer to heel as the injury is more likely to the tendon where blood flow is lower. 

Other causes can include: 

Symptoms usually consist of a sudden sharp pain at the back of the thigh. They are graded 1, 2 or 3 depending on how bad they are. 

 

Grade 1: The patient may have tightness in the back of the thigh and is aware of some discomfort but will be able to walk normally. 

 

Grade 2: The patient will most likely be walking with a limp and have some swelling, bruising and pain. Sudden twinges of pain during activity will occur that can be reproduced when pressing on the hamstring or trying to bend the knee against resistance. 

 

Grade 3: This is the most severe injury involving a tear to half or all of the muscle. The patient may need crutches to walk and feel severe muscle pain and weakness. Swelling will happen immediately and bruising will usually appear within 24 hours. 

 

Pulled hamstrings are very common, and can reoccur, and we suggest that someone should see a therapist as soon as possible if they suspect a grade 2 or 3 injury. 

We recommend our patients do the following to prevent and treat hamstring injuries: 

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