There are a few hard rules about injuries to the muscular and skeletal systems and when you should seek intervention. People on a daily basis, pull, strain, sprain, tear, twist, contuse parts of their body but are never sure on what to do or where to go. Do I go to a doctor first, Casualty or A&E maybe, or straight to a Physical Therapist?
Firstly there are many different types of injuries we can have and generally people know by their amount of pain or visually if they need to go to A&E for immediate care, but what about the ankle twist off the footpath? Does it need therapy and questions arise like do I use ice or heat etc.
Let’s look at the different types of issues that show up on our ingeniously designed bodies!
From easiest to manage to worse they are generally as follows:
Strain in a muscle
A basic muscle strain, not close to a joint like a mid leg back of hamstring strain. This is a simple over stretched and sometimes micro tear in the muscle fibres. They are generally graded from 1 to 3 depending on the severity. 1 being easiest and 3 being worse!
Treatment: Basic rest and ice is advised here to help reduce inflammation. There are conflicting views on usage of ice lately but let’s stick with the conventional use of ice as an anti inflammatory for now. Grade 1 usually clears up without too much intervention but Grade 3 will take longer and if there’s bruising around it you could do with some therapist intervention and treatment due to a bigger tear which may affect the range of movement or joint articulation.
Strain in a muscle in or close to the joint!
Similar to the above but would highly recommend assessment and treatment due to the complexity of a joint. Especially if it’s in the shoulder for example, as this contains numerous muscles but 4 main rotator cuffs which depend heavily on each other to carry out the number of different movements you do on a daily basis. If one goes wrong, it will compensate to the other 3 and cause real problems in following weeks and months.
Treatment: Similar to above when the injury occurs but then we use manipulation and massage techniques to find and treat the issue which will speed up recovery , especially useful if you are an athlete and time dependant on being able to compete.
Tendon Strain
This is on the tendon close to the joint that allows the muscle to attach to the bone. Usually from impact or sports, this does need to be assessed by a Doctor or Physical Therapist and can be treated by both, as long as the tendon has not completely detached or ruptured away from the bone. Tests on assessment can determine this and either treated or sent for scans to confirm complete or partial rupture if needed.
Treatment: The difference between this and a muscle strain is about 3 to 4 weeks healing time, due to the tendons not having as much blood supply and elasticity as the muscle. If you ignore it , the chances are you will affect the operation of the closest joint due to compensation and in lomg term this causes all kinds of worse issues , so advice is to get it assessed just to be safe.
Ligament Sprain
This is when it’s getting more complicated as the ligaments job is to hold two bones together so when you damage or tear them, they are now compromising the whole joint. Again there are different severities of sprains but like the tendon strain, they take a lot longer to heal due to non elasticity and very poor blood supply.
Treatment: A grade 1 does need assessment and treatment whereas a Grade 3 like the “Cruciate ligament” in the knee needs surgical intervention and takes approx 6 months to heal and rehabilitate fully.
Generally, you need to see a doctor or therapist to diagnose and advise which of the above you need.
I hope this helps in the understanding of when and who you need to seek treatment and below is all our details should you need any advice or treatment outlined in our clinic in Mexilhoeira grande, Portimao.
About Us
Having studied in Ireland, England and America over the last 15 years, we have gained a wealth of information and effective techniques to treat most if not all Musclo-Skeletal issues presented to us.
Please feel free to read our reviews on our Facebook page for more proof of what we do and who we have helped in our almost 3 years in Portugal and 12 years in Ireland, and how you can eradicate your ongoing pain or avoid needless surgery.
We treat and speak English and Portuguese and a little German if necessary.
Don’t accept pain and discomfort as part of your daily life. Treatments are by appointment only so please message, call number below or tag yourself here with a comment or if local to Portimao, drop by our clinic and make your appointment.
Muito Obrigado!
David and James - Neuro Back Pain Clinic
(Formerly Largo Damaso Clinic) Mexilheoira Grande
T: 928 022 494
E:largodamaso@hotmail.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Neurobackpainclinc
