Tuesday, 27 November 2012

The What, Why & How of Sports Hernia

People who are into sports just love their sports and put all their heart and soul into it and amidst all that might happen to incur injuries. Most of the times the injuries are ligament tears or muscle tears and are enormously painful. One of the most common injuries among sports persons is sports hernia. True, sports hernia is not commonly heard of but its occurrence is quite common. If you are wondering what is sports hernia all about then let’s take a look.

What is sports hernia?

Sports hernia is the tearing of the muscle’s soft tissues in the lower abdominal and groin area. Sometimes, this extends to the thighs and the pubis. It crops up if the player takes a sudden twist or turn while in the game. It is caused when the ligaments or tendons of the muscles are stretched intensively.

Medical professionals refer to sports hernia as athletic pubalgia but it is commonly known as sports hernia. Also, sports hernia does not really mean that a hernia is present in the body. More often than not, it is just that a tendon or a ligament has been torn.
In extreme cases, a hernia is found in the inguinal canal. It will be commonly seen among the players of football, basketball, wrestling, ice hockey soccer etc. It is so because these sports require more twirling of muscles than any other sport. Sports hernia is extremely painful and has to be treated totally. It should be the priority of the patient to show it to a sports injury doctor.

How does sports hernia happen to a player?

Sports hernia occurs due to weirdly curving or twirling around your body while in the game. Doing so, snaps the tendons in the lower abdominal area and the groin area, causing the player to suffer from a writhing pain. This pain will heal after a little rest from the player side but it might come about once he or she is back in the game. It is best to get yourself treated from a sports injury doctor if you are suffering from sports hernia.
The doctor will look for any softness in the pubis or groin and if so he or she will recommend a physical and an imaging test to you. Only after this test will any doctor be able to confirm the presence or absence of a sports hernia in your body. It is never possible to diagnose sports hernia on the basis of more examination. Tests are necessary.

How does one treat a patient of sports hernia?


One can opt for either a surgical method or a non-surgical method for the healing of sports hernia in the body. Whether surgery or no surgery, sports hernia will take enough time to heal and you will have to be patient with it. The best thing to do is, follow whatever the doctor tells you to do and you shall do fine.