Apex Manual Therapy can provide the muscle strain recovery and pain relief you need. Whether you’re suffering from a muscle strain in the back, muscle strain in the leg or another body part, we have the experience and expertise to address the problem.
Our advanced physical therapists have obtained the highest level of orthopedic physical therapy training and are recognized as Fellows of the American Academy of Orthopedic Manual Physical Therapy, (FAAOMPT). This educational achievement is beyond the doctorate level and guarantees the gold standard care for musculoskeletal conditions.
At Apex Manual Therapy each visit is spent entirely one-on-one with a Fellow to provide the very best treatment for your muscle strain recovery.
If you’re in the Greater Austin or Pflugerville, TX, area schedule a free consultation with our advanced physical therapists.
We guarantee you’ll see the difference in our approach and your results.
What is a Muscle Strain?
A muscle strain is muscle damage. Muscle damage can occur for a variety of reasons. Many people mistakenly believe sprains and strains are the same injury when in fact they are different: a ligament sprain verse muscle strain. The term sprain is used when discuss ligament damage, while strain refers to muscle or tendon damage.
Keep reading to learn more about the causes of muscle damage, muscle strain symptoms and muscle strain treatment.
Top Causes of Muscle Damage
Contusion, also known as a bruise, is from an external object contacting the muscle either through blunt force or compression, which causes the blood vessels to burst. When the blood vessels burst it releases blood.
A laceration is a cut to the muscle. For this to happen, an object must pierce through all three layers of the skin and cut the muscle below. Lacerations are less common than contusions and strains, but they do occur.
A strain is the disruption of the muscle fibers. Muscles are designed to contract, relax, shorten and lengthen to produce movements. When the contraction or lengthening of the muscle fibers is too great, muscle damage can occur. A muscle strain can be mild with minimal disruption of the muscle fibers or it could be severe with a complete muscle rupture.
Muscle Strain Symptoms
The most common muscle strain symptoms include:
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Bruising
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Localized pain
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Painful movement
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Limping
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Loss of motion
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Decreased range of motion
Muscle Strain Treatment
Physical therapists are movement specialists and experts in muscle strain treatment. Physical therapists often use P.R.I.C.E. (Protect, Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation) followed by movement training to provide muscle strain pain relief.
The protect and rest phases are an important part of reducing muscle strain recovery time. Protect and rest does not mean to halt all movement. Stopping all movement would prolong healing time, cause excessive scar tissue, decrease blood flow and cause further dysfunctions. Therefore, the appropriate amount of exercise and proper movement is important for muscle strain recovery. However, if movement is not performed correctly (walking, bending, rising from sitting, ect.), you could be placing more strain on the muscle. Physical therapists are the movement specialist that optimize healing and prevent reinjury, arthritis, surgery, joint replacement, degenerative conditions, and more.
Muscle Strain Recovery Time Phases
Muscle strain recovery time is also dependent of the severity of the muscle strain. When muscle damage occurs, a healing response takes place in three main phases.
Inflammatory response occurs immediately and lasts between one to several days depending on the severity of the muscle damage. The inflammatory response cleans out the damaged tissue and activates cells for healing.
Proliferation phase is when cells invade the wound to lay down new tissue known as scar tissue. This helps close and repair the wound.
Maturation phase can last for several months to over a year. This is when the scar tissue is matured and adapts to the demands placed on it.
Muscle Strain Pain Relief
To provide muscle strain pain relief, optimal movement is required. Movement is key in all three phases of the healing response mentioned above. Movement brings blood flow, decreases inflammation, forms new tissue for wound closure and strengthens weak tissue. It’s easily the most important factor in muscle strain recovery. Physical therapists are the experts who can provide guidance to optimize movement allowing you to heal correctly from a muscle strain.
Schedule a free consultation at Apex Manual Therapy to customize your muscle strain treatment plan.
