Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2020 Oct 13;17(20):7457.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph17207457.

Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome in Novice and Recreational Runners: A Systematic Review

Claudia Menéndez  1 , Lucía Batalla  1 , Alba Prieto  1 , Miguel Ángel Rodríguez  1 , Irene Crespo  1   2 , Hugo Olmedillas  1   3
Affiliations

Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome in Novice and Recreational Runners: A Systematic Review

Claudia Menéndez et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

This systematic review evaluates the existing literature about medial tibial stress syndrome (MTSS) in novice and recreational runners. PubMed/MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Science, Scopus, SPORTDiscus and CINAHL databases were searched until July 2020. Studies covering risk factors, diagnostic procedures, treatment methods and time to recovery of MTSS in novice and recreational runners were selected. Eleven studies met the inclusion criteria and were included. The risk factors of MTSS are mainly intrinsic and include higher pelvic tilt in the frontal plane, peak internal rotation of the hip, navicular drop and foot pronation, among others. Computed tomography (CT) and pressure algometry may be valid instruments to corroborate the presence of this injury and confirm the diagnosis. Regarding treatment procedures, arch-support foot orthoses are able to increase contact time, normalize foot pressure distribution and similarly to shockwave therapy, reduce pain. However, it is important to take into account the biases and poor methodological quality of the included studies, more research is needed to confirm these results.

Keywords: navicular drop; overuse injury; running; running-related injuries; shin splints.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flow diagram of study selection process. MTSS: medial tibial stress syndrome.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Factors commonly associated with foot overpronation.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Van Middelkoop M., Kolkman J., Van Ochten J., Bierma-Zeinstra S.M., Koes B.W. Risk factors for lower extremity injuries among male marathon runners. Scand. J. Med. Sci. Sport. 2008;18:691–697. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0838.2007.00768.x. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Nikolaidis P., Rosemann T., Knechtle B. A Brief Review of Personality in Marathon Runners: The Role of Sex, Age and Performance Level. Sports. 2018;6:99. doi: 10.3390/sports6030099. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Hoffman M.D., Ong J.C., Wang G. Historical analysis of participation in 161km ultramarathons in North America. Int. J. Hist. Sport. 2010;27:1877–1891. doi: 10.1080/09523367.2010.494385. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Hespanhol Junior L.C., Pillay J.D., van Mechelen W., Verhagen E. Meta-Analyses of the Effects of Habitual Running on Indices of Health in Physically Inactive Adults. Sport Med. 2015;45:1455–1468. doi: 10.1007/s40279-015-0359-y. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Videbæk S., Bueno A.M., Nielsen R.O., Rasmussen S. Incidence of Running-Related Injuries Per 1000 h of running in Different Types of Runners: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Sport Med. 2015;45:1017–1026. doi: 10.1007/s40279-015-0333-8. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources