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Case Reports
. 2014 Jun;48(11):929-38.
doi: 10.1136/bjsports-2012-091400. Epub 2013 Jan 15.

Recurrent hamstring muscle injury: applying the limited evidence in the professional football setting with a seven-point programme

Peter Brukner  1 , Andrew Nealon, Christopher Morgan, Darren Burgess, Andrew Dunn
Affiliations
Free PMC article
Case Reports

Recurrent hamstring muscle injury: applying the limited evidence in the professional football setting with a seven-point programme

Peter Brukner et al. Br J Sports Med. 2014 Jun.
Free PMC article

Abstract

Recurrent hamstring injuries are a major problem in sports such as football. The aim of this paper was to use a clinical example to describe a treatment strategy for the management of recurrent hamstring injuries and examine the evidence for each intervention. A professional footballer sustained five hamstring injuries in a relatively short period of time. The injury was managed successfully with a seven-point programme-biomechanical assessment and correction, neurodynamics, core stability, eccentric strengthening, an overload running programme, injection therapies and stretching/relaxation. The evidence for each of these treatment options is reviewed. It is impossible to be definite about which aspects of the programme contributed to a successful outcome. Only limited evidence is available in most cases; therefore, decisions regarding the use of different treatment modalities must be made by using a combination of clinical experience and research evidence.

Keywords: Exercise Rehabilitation; Hamstring Injuries; Muscle Damage/Injuries; Soccer; Soft Tissue Injuries.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Axial T2-weighted image with fat saturation showing small region of muscle fibre disruption (arrows) reflecting grade 2 injury, involving aponeurosis of long head of biceps femoris.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Axial T2-weighted image with fat saturation showing interfascicular oedema (arrows) centrally reflecting grade 1 injury, in the long head of biceps femoris.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Axial T2-weighted image with fat saturation showing small region of muscle fibre disruption (arrows) reflecting grade 2 injury, involving the long head of biceps femoris with myofascial oedema.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Axial T2-weighted image showing interfascicular and myofascial oedema (arrows) reflecting grade 1 injury, involving the long and short heads of biceps femoris.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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