Injury

[jt196]

Sorry don't know where to post this and need some guidance.

Long story short, last July daughter pulled up running to first with pain hamstring, stretched, iced wrapped sore rest of weekend but able to play. Sore but able to play next week, week after did not play as it was last tournament. Went to Dr. and said slight hamstring pull, did PT, exercise and ice for 3-4 weeks. During this time was always sore but played school volleyball and new team tryouts. Finished volleyball, sore but able to play thru discomfort, played fall ball with new team had pain and not normal maneuverability or quickness. All along Dr. said OK to play as long as it doesn't stop her. After fall ball had MRI which was negative, CT Scan which showed a little bruising area on bone. Dr. said maybe stress fracture, went on crutches and no weight bearing for 3 weeks, then 1 week of slowly putting weight on leg and light exercises, then this week start with no crutches. Got home from school yesterday and complained leg hurt like before. Daughter never just sits always doing something and when she practices or plays she goes 100% all the time.

She is ready to breakdown as she is tired of dealing with this and wants to play like before. We are trying to get a second opinion. Has anybody been thru this before? What would you do next? Don't know where to go next, just feel terrible for my daughter.

 

[quincy]

Try to get a referral to a sports medicine specialist.

One of the problems DD had when she was younger is what shutting down meant. Doctor put a hard cast on her foot, didn’t slow her down too much she was still running around everywhere.

3 weeks might be a little short for a stress fracture, not a doctor, just know it knocked me out a longer. I am also not sure how it might be a stress fracture, I think it should or shouldn’t be with the tests you have had done.

I wish her luck!

 

[Coach JV]

someone needs a new doctor

 

[vdubya]

/non condescending font ON/

Unfortunately this sounds pretty typical for a sporto that doesn't process the word 'rest' when it is spoken. The word 'rest' just doesn't stand out when words like sprain, pull, tomography, X-ray, MRI etc are bouncing around the room.

"Rest" just doesn't have the 'wow' factor that sticks in one's head like "stress fracture" does.

JT, I regret that your DD is having to deal with this, really, but did a physician really think it would be a good idea to heal a July sports-related injury by doubling down on overlapping fall sports? If so, you probably need a new physician, but I'm not tossing yours under the bus. I would bet that the importance of resting the injury was stressed if you think back and ignore the 'impact' words from prior medical exams.

I'd say: GO THEE and REST IT!

Then again, I could be wrong. This is a softball forum...on the internet. See what her physician says.

 

[SyndreSoftball]

Rest, Rest, and more Rest is what she needs. No activity, these types of injuries take time to heal completely, Get her back to 100%, It is not worth it to continue to play with pain, take the time to let it heal and come back stornger than before.

 

[daddiox2]

I tend to agree... more rest. But what do I know.

 

[KCPRK]

Bruises on the bone can take 6 months plus to go away if they aren't reaggravated. Stress fractures take 4 weeks min of no weight bearing and one single instance of weight bearing can reset the timer and increase the fracture extending healing time. Tricky injury.

Did she take a shot (physical contact) at any point prior? the muscle can get crushed against the bone damaging it further than a pull but be perceived as a pull. She may see it as -original impact made it sore or tight or bruised but manageable injury that is later amplified by running where she felt a pull that further tore the muscle. As in an injury that started small and got larger.

Or is this closer to a joint where the tendon can tear and/or pull away bone from the joint-an actual leg break.

research this injury from a football perspective as there is a lot more info football related.

Two things that have been used in sport medicine for years but are recently available to the public are KT Tape and a compression sleeve. Ive seen the sleeves marketed as recovery shirts pants etc at major sports stores by nike and UA.

It needs much more time than 4 weeks. Occupational and sports injuries are my job

I also find in my work that there are many dr that don't do enough research or have enough experience and misdiagnose patients frequently. They often treat one symptom conservatively and ignore other symptoms at times-like diagnosing a car problem-fix one thing at a time. problem is if theres a greater injury or you have an active athlete they don't or wont have the time to "wait and see".

Wait and see is the same as rest and PT. Its very conservative and time consuming.

Orthos all have body parts they are great at and others not so much. Find a lower extremity ortho who only does lower extremity. Call a large ortho office and ask if they have a general ortho or a part specialist. That's how you tell quality of care IMHO

 

[KCPRK]

Stress fractures can be misdiagnosed as hamstring pulls. MRI only focus on specific spots that the dr orders and the fracture can be hard to see in an MRI and even be on a part of the body not ordered for MRI.

For example a stress fracture of the Pubic Ramus (the bone inside your butt cheek that your hamstring attaches to) feels and looks like a hamstring pull and not even perceived on the leg by most people. Logic would say if my leg hurts my legs injured but in this case your pelvis is injured so your leg hurts and not your pelvis.

This is a common injury in sports where running is a core function. It can simply occur from overuse.

 

[Sweet Lou]

Injuries take different times to heal for different folks and can easily be reaggrevated if activity starts too soon.

I mean just look at pro athletes. David Lee had a "minor hamstring pull" that was suppose to keep him our of the first 2 games of the season for the Warriors. He came back too soon, reaggrevated it in his 1st game back and hasn't returned yet 20 games later.

If a Dr. prescribes rest, then rest is what your DD should be doing.

 

[Amy in AZ.]

Did they try muscle relaxers? I pulled my exterior obliques last week and that is what the doctor did for me. It is really helping.

I echo what everyone is saying about rest. I am on day 7.