Sports hernia is a very common injury, and the various symptoms can be extremely painful. This story provides some information about this condition, its symptoms, and what needs to be done if this problem arises.
Groin pain is a very common problem among athletes, and there are plenty of symptoms that clearly indicate some damage sustained.
With the high intensity sports that are played, which require a lot of heavy running and lifting of heavy weights for training, sports hernia (or athletic pubalgia) is a condition that regularly plagues many athletes around the world. Furthermore, the healing time for this condition is quite long.
If a proper rehabilitation procedure is not followed the hernia can become worse and can cripple the individual for an extremely long period of time. Even by following the recommended healing procedure and duration, the athlete would experience severe bouts of pain occasionally, owing to the sports hernia sustained.
What is Sports Hernia?
This is a condition that arises when there is a weakening of the tendons and muscles in the lower abdominal wall of an individual. This is different from a normal hernia (also known as an inguinal hernia) in the sense that there is no visible swelling or pouching of the muscles in this area.
Apart from this factor, there is no difference between a sports hernia and an inguinal hernia. It is for this reason that the symptoms of athletic pubalgia will not be very different from that of inguinal hernia.
The area where the hernia occurs is known as the inguinal canal, and this is located in the lower abdomen just above the groin. There are various muscles, tendons, and ligaments present in this area, and this is why it is very easy to develop a condition of inguinal hernia or sports hernia.
The hernia does not occur as a result of weak abdominal muscles, but because of the thinning of the abdominal wall, and there are several reasons that lead to the emergence of this condition. Several other types of hernia exist, and the basic nature of these conditions is the same.
Symptoms
The most obvious of all symptoms is an intense pain felt in the lower abdomen area, and upper groin area. One needs to think of the moment when this pain first appeared, and must try to recollect what he/she was doing then.
In highly intense sports like football, basketball, hockey, tennis, or running, this condition will occur when the individual turns suddenly and feels a vague sensation of pain in that particular area.
Another clear symptom of the condition is that the pain vanishes after a few days of rest, however, it reappears when one resumes playing the sport again. This is the clearest indicator that the pain was not caused due to a groin pull or a groin stretch, but is a sports hernia instead.
This pain can also spread to the legs and this causes extreme discomfort, especially while carrying out physical activities.
Symptoms in women are pretty much the same, the only difference being that the pain may also be felt in the testicles in the case of men. One must also determine if the pain increases when the individual bends forward, because this is also a clear sign that the pain is caused by sports hernia.
Moreover, these symptoms are similar in nature to groin hernia symptoms and abdominal hernia symptoms.
Treatment
Physical therapy would be required to treat this condition. Some painkillers would be administered in order to get rid of the symptoms, and this would be followed by a detailed physical rehabilitation program that would involve various methods of treatment for hernia repair.
Needless to say, the individual needs to avoid all forms of physical activity in this time period, and may not be able resume the sport that he/she plays.
If this fails, then a sports hernia surgery would be necessary and a mesh will be attached in order to support the abdominal walls. Undergoing this surgery means that the individual would require another couple of weeks to recover.
A detailed program about walking on a treadmill and then cycling before undertaking rigorous physical activity, would then be employed. All in all, the whole process could take anything between 8-12 weeks if there is a surgery.
A recovery time of 4-6 weeks would be necessary in case there is no surgery. By reading about these causes of hernia, one can now try to avoid certain activities that may put him/her at risk.
This condition can be quite painful and can resurface after a few months as well. Extreme caution must be taken until the athlete is fully healed, and visiting a specialist is absolutely mandatory.
Disclaimer: This story is for informative purposes only, and should not be used as a replacement for expert medical advice.