So I recently learned the hard way that stretching is an important part of sports participation. As I anxiously watched all my other tennis mates preparing for our league by stretching out their muscles, all I could think about was getting out to courts to get started. About an hour into my match, I was simply running for a ball when I felt my calf explode – for a second I thought that someone had hit me from behind with a line-drive shot. But after I struggled to a halt, and saw my gastrocnemius muscle drooping, I knew exactly what I had done – torn my gastroc. Gastrocnemius calf muscle tears are a very common injury, and thankfully very treatable without need for surgery. Six weeks later, after following the treatment plan I have outlined here, I was back on the courts. I was very impressed by three things:
1. How important icing was initially to decrease the swelling and bleeding that invariably happens with these injuries
2. How much of a difference calf compression made in my ability to return to work (I had to operate the next day).
3. Rehabilitation after the injury was key in allowing me to return to my pre-injury level of sports.
Please see our new content about shoulder fractures. I have personally had a large number of these patients come through my office recently, and so have been continually reminded about how slow and painful the recovery can be for most people. Swelling is frequently severe and can go all the way down to the hand. Cryotherapy is invaluable in helping to reduce pain and swelling. I also frequently remind people that regardless of whether we allow nature to heal the bone (by placing the arm in a sling) or utilize surgery to realign the fragments and fix them with plates/screws/prostheses, rehabilitation is a very important part of the recovery process and is the key difference between a good outcome and a mediocre outcome.
Dr. FarjoWe are pleased to announce that we now accept PayPal as a payment method, in addition to our other payment methods of Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover. We also accept other payments, including money orders, cashier’s checks, and wire transfers – please feel free to contact us at customerservice@jointhealing.com for more information.
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September 6th, 2010
-- Dr. Farjo
September 6th, 2010
-- Dr. Farjo
September 6th, 2010
-- Dr. Farjo
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