Thursday, December 16, 2010

How to Shin Splints Treatment

Shin Splints Treatment

Causes and how to deal with him

Have you been experiencing pain in your lower legs while running? If your answer is in affirmative, then you might be suffering from shin splints. Shin splints is one of the most common overuse injuries that generally affect runners. Shin bone is one of the weight bearing bones located in the lower leg. In medical terminology, shin bone and shin splints are referred to as tibia and medial tibial stress syndrome respectively. Many a time, strenuous physical activities can be responsible for the onset of shin splints. People who engage in physical activities such as running and jogging, sprinting or other exercises without a warm up session are more likely to suffer from this condition. If you have been experiencing pain or throbbing in your shins, you must consult a doctor for shin splints treatment. You can also try some home remedies to alleviate the symptoms of shin splints. Before I tell you more about running shin splints treatment, let me give you some information on the causes and symptoms of shin splints.

Shin Splints: Causes and Symptoms

As I mentioned earlier, shin splints are commonly seen in runners. If you have recently started jogging or running, you are most likely to suffer from lower leg pain. This injury is also likely to occur in athletes who have resumed training after some time. Running on an uneven surface or intensifying one's training might also result in shin splints. In case of inexperienced runners, poor running mechanics is generally responsible for causing anterior shin splints, which is injury to the muscles in the front of the leg. Frequent downhill running, running on hard surfaces or indulging in sports or physical activities that involve rapid starts and stops are the common causes of anterior shin splints. When the inside part of the leg along the tibia gets inflamed, one is said to suffer from posterior shin splints. Generally this type of shin splints is caused due to muscle imbalances. Problems associated with the tendons in the posterior compartment can be responsible for this condition. People with high arches are more susceptible to posterior shin splints.

The pain due to shin splints can be experienced anywhere from the knee to the ankle. It is generally felt due to the inflammation of the tendon sheath that surrounds the shin bone. One of the most common shin splints symptoms is sharp pain in the lower legs. The pain is the maximum at the beginning of training session or running, but the intensity reduces after some time. However, one is likely to experience pain after the completion of the workout session also. Sometimes, lower leg pain might be accompanied by swelling as well. If left untreated, this lower leg pain might become constant. Now that you know what causes shin splints, let me move on to shin splints treatment.




ShinSplints Treatment:

Wondering how to get rid of shin splints? If you have been experiencing pain in the lower leg, you must consult a doctor soon. It's best to get an X-ray so as to rule out the possibility of tibia or fibula stress fracture. As is the case with muscle sprains and sprains, taking rest is one of the most important aspects of shin splints treatment. Compression is equally important for alleviating the symptoms of shin splints. Using a good quality compression wrap for taping shin splints will help in absorbing the stress and provide the much-needed support. As far as anterior shin splints treatment is concerned, the compression wrap must be placed higher up the leg. Since compression wrap must be placed over the soft tissue that is adjacent to the injury area, for posterior shin splints treatment, the wrap will be applied a little lower. Applying ice packs will also help, but make sure that you don't put ice directly on the affected area. Wrap the ice in a clean cloth and then apply it for 15 minutes. Keeping the leg elevated will also prove beneficial in shin splints treatment. Doctors might also prescribe anti-inflammatory drugs to provide relief from pain.

Shin splints massage treatment also works wonders. Massage therapy can help in alleviating the symptoms to a great extent. Once your doctor gives you a green signal, you can start with your training sessions, but if you often suffer from this condition, it's best to change your running shoes. Buy the ones that have nice cushioning and are effective at shock absorption. This is one of the best tips for avoiding shin splints. Use of orthotic support might also be suggested. Once the injury has healed, you could move on to the other part of shin splints treatment. Stretches for shin splints can surely help in treating shin splints and will also help in preventing them in future to a great extent. If you want to know how to heal shin splints, you must find out more about exercises to strengthen the shin splints. Make sure that you start your training sessions with warm up exercise always.

This was all about shin splints cure. If you have recently started running or jogging, you are more likely to suffer from shin splints. So, if you have been experiencing any of the symptoms given above, consult a doctor soon. If the pain is caused due to shin splints, follow the advice of your doctor regarding effective shin splints treatment options

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