Phil Heler, of Buxton Osteopathy Clinic, provides some advice on how to diagnose, treat and help to avoid groin strains.
A groin strain is an injury to the muscles of the inner thigh.
This condition is common in people who participate in sports that require explosive lower leg movement i.e running (with sudden changes in direction) or jumping.
Groin injuries are therefore frequent in sports such as football, basketball and hockey.
The groin muscles are the fan-like muscles situated in the upper thigh that serve to move the leg from an outside to an inside position from the hip.
The muscles are known collectively as the adductor muscle group and consist of six muscles that bridge the anatomical space from the pelvis to the inner part of the femur (thigh bone).
Groin strains often involve the primary adductor muscle called Adductor Longus through a combination of overuse, sudden contraction or moving beyond its normal excursion.
Mild strains often involve only a few muscle fibres (Grade 1) and therefore most of the muscle tissue will remain intact.
However, injuries can vary from partial (Grade 2) to complete tears (Grade 3), depending on the suddenness and force of the movement.
As with any sports, injury prevention is the best course of action and a thorough warm-up routine is always advised.
Symptoms for a Grade 1 tear can take as little as week to vanish, but a Grade 3 can take a couple of months and may even require surgical intervention.
As with any injury the same basic rules apply where RICE (Rest Ice Compression and Elevation) and anti-inflammatories are the best treatment.