Torn muscle fibre versus torn muscle – what is the difference?

Introduction

Muscle injuries occur mainly in sports with rapid changes in movement and speed. Muscle strains and torn muscle fibers are common injuries in people who are active in sports. The difference between the two types of injuries lies mainly in the timing of the onset of symptoms and the duration of recovery.

Differentiation of the different forms of muscle injuries

What exactly is the difference between a pulled muscle, torn muscle fibre, torn muscle bundle and torn muscle? All of these are typical and frequent sports injuries. In order to understand the distinction between the individual injuries, one must first of all deal with the basic structure of a muscle.

Every muscle consists of a multitude of smallest functional units, the so-called sarcomeres. Each sarcomere can contract, i.e. contract, and then relax again. However, since the force that a single sarcomere can build up is not particularly great, several sarcomeres normally contract together.

Many sarcomeres together form a muscle fibril. Several muscle fibrils come together to form a muscle fiber and many muscle fibers become a muscle fiber bundle. Ultimately, each muscle results from many individual muscle fiber bundles.

The structure of each muscle is therefore ordered according to strict rules. The difference between the various injuries lies in the extent of the damage, which can be easily understood with the background knowledge of how to build a muscle. If one or more sarcomeres are overstressed or overstretched and are thus damaged, the result is muscle strain.

The actual muscle structure is still intact and no structures are torn, nevertheless the muscle is injured and hurts. In the case of greater overstressing, a rupture of several adjacent fibrils, i.e. a rupture of the muscle fibre, can occur. If the damage is even more severe, all the fibers of a muscle fiber bundle may tear; this is known as a muscle bundle tear for short.

In the worst case, all muscle fiber bundles of a muscle are overloaded and injured at the same time. If all muscle fiber bundles tear, this results in a complete muscle tear. All fibrils and fibers and bundles and are then damaged. The distinction between a muscle strain and the different tears is therefore unavoidable from a medical perspective if a muscle injury is to be correctly classified and diagnosed. Even the correct naming of the injury allows a rough overview of its severity.