Muscle tear: what is it and how is it treated? Can pressotherapy help you?

“I was running and… I felt like I got hit in the leg with a stone!”. If you have heard this phrase before or have said it yourself, I recommend you keep reading to find out how SIZEN pressotherapy can help you.

Muscle fiber rupture, also called fiber rupture or muscle tear, as the name suggests, is defined as a break in the fibers that make up the muscle. The most common fiber ruptures occur in the lower body, specifically in the hamstrings, calves, quadriceps, and adductors muscles; however, it is not unusual for them to occur in the trunk or arms.

Depending on the severity of the injury, it can be classified into different grades:

• Grade I: a small number of fibers break, causing discomfort or slight pain to the patient.
• Grade II: also called partial rupture. A greater number of fibers break, but the muscle belly is not affected. The pain is more intense.
• Grade III: known as total rupture. The muscle belly breaks completely, the patient can barely move the affected area, and the pain is very sharp.

How can SIZEN help you with a muscle fiber rupture?

SIZEN pressotherapy can help you immediately after the rupture occurs, but it can also assist in injury prevention. After the rupture, fluid or blood (hematoma) can accumulate, causing inflammation in the area. This excess fluid can be drained thanks to SIZEN pressotherapy, thus speeding up the recovery process.

For this, it is recommended to use mode 2 since it is ideal for draining the excess accumulated fluid. First, chamber 1 inflates, then the second, and so on consecutively until all are inflated, always maintaining the inflation pressure of the previous chambers. Once all are inflated, they deflate simultaneously, and the process starts again.

For lymphatic drainage with pressotherapy, it is recommended that the pressure be between 30 and 40 mmHg and the duration between 30 and 60 minutes.

On the other hand, one of the main causes of muscle fiber rupture is muscle fatigue. However, thanks to SIZEN and changing bad habits, we can avoid overloads. Specifically, modes 3 and 4 are designed for this. Mode 3 applies a pulse massage, similar to one done by hand, facilitating a deep, complete, and quick muscle recovery. Mode 4 applies a full and more intensive session through compression and decompression.

Most fiber ruptures occur in the lower limbs, so we should use SIZEN PANTS (boots that cover from the feet to the groin) or FULL PANTS (covering from the feet to the navel). However, if the rupture occurs in the arm, we would use PRESSOTHERAPY ARM SLEEVE, or in the case of an abdominal rupture, we would use the PRESSOTHERAPY ABDOMINAL BELT.

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What are the causes of a muscle fiber rupture?

There are many causes that can lead to a muscle fiber rupture; below, we explain the most common ones:

• Poor warm-up: it is quite common, especially at the amateur level, not to warm up properly before sports practice. If the muscle is not warm enough and is suddenly overstretched, it can tear and cause a muscle rupture.
• Flexibility deficit: working on flexibility in an athlete’s routine is important for injury prevention. Specifically for muscle tears, the greater the muscle flexibility, the greater the stretching capacity without reaching rupture.
• Muscle fatigue: rest is a fundamental part of an athlete’s routine. Poor rest and the resulting muscle overload will cause greater stiffness in the structures and, therefore, increase the likelihood of tissue damage.
• Direct trauma: a fiber rupture can occur not only indirectly (the muscle does not receive a direct blow but breaks due to overstretching) but also from an impact on the muscle: a kick, a fall on that area, etc.
• Sedentary lifestyle: like any pathology, the less accustomed the body is to doing sports, the more likely it is to get injured. Muscle fiber rupture is no exception. If you are not used to exercising and having your muscles stretch and contract more strongly than usual, it is much more likely that they will suffer some damage.
• Poor nutrition: an unhealthy diet is often one of the main causes of muscle, tendon, and ligament injuries. Poor nutrition produces toxic elements in the body that make body tissues more rigid and poorly vascularized, increasing the likelihood of tissue damage.
• Etc.

What are the symptoms of a muscle fiber rupture?

When there is excessive elongation of our fibers that exceeds the elasticity limit of the muscle fiber, a rupture occurs. The most common symptom is intense and sudden pain, commonly known as the “stone hit syndrome.” It is called this because the person feels as if they have been hit by a stone in the affected area.
Also, a hematoma often appears in the area due to the rupture; however, sometimes it does not appear, depending on the depth of the tear or the affected area.
Furthermore, depending on the size or grade of the rupture, there will be more or less inflammation in the affected area.

What can I do if I suspect I have a muscle fiber rupture?

First, you should see a physiotherapist or doctor so that through a medical test (usually an ultrasound is enough to observe the rupture and determine its grade) they can confirm that you really have a muscle fiber rupture. Afterwards, the physiotherapist will help you heal the rupture so that your life and sports activity return to normal as soon as possible and in the best way.
If the physiotherapist or doctor cannot see you the same day of the rupture, it is recommended that until you have an appointment, you apply ice to the affected area for a maximum of 10 minutes three times a day to avoid excessive inflammation. Also, rest, elevation of the limb, and the use of SIZEN pressotherapy for the reabsorption of any edema that may have formed are important.

In conclusion, we could say that SIZEN pressotherapy not only helps make recovery better and faster when we suffer a muscle fiber rupture but also helps prevent them because if we take care of our body, we have fewer chances of damaging it.

Author:

Alicia Vicario, physiotherapist and creator of Fisiovik (IG: @fisiovik).