Diagnosis of a torn muscle fiber of the calf
When diagnosing a torn muscle fibre, the patient survey is particularly important. Thus the doctor asks the patient about the exact course of the accident and the symptoms. Here already a first estimate can be made whether it concerns a muscle fiber tear or only a calf strain.
Once the diagnosis has been made, treatment of the torn muscle fiber must be initiated. The most proven rule in the treatment of a torn calf muscle fiber is the so-called PECH rule. This means: Pause sports and protect the calf, place the ice pack on the calf, put the compression bandage and leg up.
It is very important to note that the leg should be protected but not left completely immobile. Patients who do not move the leg at all for a few weeks after a torn calf muscle fibre and who only put the leg up have an increased risk of deep vein thrombosis. In order to avoid preventive treatment with a blood-thinning abdominal injection, normal walking and running movements should be carried out during everyday life and the leg should be elevated from time to time under cooling and compression.
Persons who experience sudden shooting pains in the calf area should immediately stop all sports activities and take a break. Under certain circumstances, such symptoms can indicate the presence of a torn muscle fibre in the calf. Failure to take an immediate break from any strain on the affected muscle can lead to serious complications and a significant prolongation of the healing phase.
Persons who do regular training sessions can assume that an absolute break of at least two weeks must be observed in the case of a torn muscle fibre in the calf. Subsequently, a slow increase in load can be started. However, as soon as pain reoccurs, the break must be extended.
Even if there is no pain at all, it is important that you do not attempt to engage in sports activities for at least three to five weeks. Particularly in the first days after a torn muscle fiber in the calf, a special bandage can help to positively influence the healing process. If the bandage is applied as a compression bandage immediately after the first symptoms appear, the pressure on the affected calf reduces the development of swelling.
In addition, the bandage can help to prevent blood from sinking into the surrounding tissue. In this way, the healing process can be supported in a targeted manner shortly after the muscle fiber rupture has developed in the calf. Wearing a bandage during sports can also help to effectively prevent the development of a torn muscle fiber at the calf.
The targeted compression of the calf muscles, which are particularly heavily strained when jogging for example, significantly reduces the probability of the occurrence of pulled muscles and torn muscle fibers. However, people who regularly engage in sports should note in this context that extensive warm-up training is considered a much more effective prophylactic measure. The reason for this is the fact that cold muscles in particular tend to react sensitively to high loads.
A further possibility of treatment is the taping of the calf. The tape is used for a variety of muscle injuries. It is used to relieve certain muscle groups and to take corresponding traction forces from them.
When treating the calf muscles, the taping is done in such a way that the kinesiotape is placed over the calf muscles and then fixed. This has the effect of bypassing the tensile forces acting on the calf muscles, thereby relieving the strain on the stricken muscles, which are affected by a torn muscle fiber.Tapering is a suitable complementary method of treatment for torn calf muscle fibers. However, whether it is sufficient as the only treatment depends on how severe the torn muscle fiber is.
If entire muscle bundles of the calf are torn off or torn through after a sports accident, for example, the proven PECH rule must be applied with additional drug treatment and the kinesiotape is only a supplement to the treatment. If there is only a small fibrous tear in the calf muscles and the person affected has only slight pain, it is possible to try to carry out a treatment using only the tape while maintaining normal sporting activity. More information on this topic can be found here Taping of torn muscle fibersAs with many sports injuries, a homeopathic treatment with Arnica D6 can be very successful and soon lead to an alleviation of the symptoms.
In addition, a preparation of Ruta D6 can be used to alleviate the symptoms. Rhus toxicodendron is also successfully used in the homeopathic treatment of sports injuries, including the calf. A homeopathic treatment is usually only an accompanying treatment and does not replace conventional medical therapy.
