The muscle on the back of the thigh is referred to as the hamstring and is actually made up of 3 separate muscles. Injuries to this muscle (Hamstring Strain) are often seen in athletes who participate in sports that involve running at high speeds or individuals who suffer a sudden, excessive stretch or strain of the hamstring. With the hamstring, if the muscle becomes overstressed it is most likely that an individual has suffered some sort of strain. The hamstring is injured in athletes when running at high speeds and attempting to stop or slow down their speed. The hamstring absorbs a lot of the energy that comes from this attempt to stop the body and sometimes cannot withstand all of the force, which can cause a stretch of the muscles it is comprised of. This injury can often be felt as a pop and pain is localized to the back of the thigh. The pain will often limit the individual in performing their daily activities and must be managed properly in order to prevent re-injury.
Following a hamstring strain, individuals will notice that they have a decreased ability in the motion that requires bringing your heel to your butt due to loss of strength and range of motion. Physical therapy can be used a means to treat and rehabilitate this injury as long as the individual follows the plan laid out by the physical therapist. The recovery process for this injury is one that can take time and require patience. Once diagnosed with a hamstring strain the first way to treat this injury is simply with rest. This will give the muscle time to heal appropriately and help with the return to prior activities without the risk for re-injury. Following rest, the focus can shift to strengthening the hamstring without stretching it too much. Exercises a physical therapy
Therapist will prescribe will often exercises to strengthen the surrounding muscles but not the actual hamstring. Once an individual begins have decreased pain and is able to exhibit strength improvements of the hamstring. Exercises will now begin to focus on lengthening the hamstring with progression to stretching and eccentric strengthening that also occurs with lengthening of the muscle. In the final stage, individuals should now have full strength and range of motion of the hamstring and be slowly returning to participation in their daily activities. Exercises will now begin to specifically focus on the individual and their ability to return to their prior activities pain free. Physical therapists will be able to provide individuals with exercises to continue with after recovering in order to prevent re-injury and improving control of their leg muscles. This is important because a second hamstring strain is often worst than the first.
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