In football, groin strain, also known as adductor strain, is one of the most common injuries – and not just for professionals. Even recreational athletes are affected. On which symptoms you recognize the groin strain, which therapy is useful and what you need to know about the duration of the disease, read here.
A lunge or a straddle, then the football player crashes with a pain-pained face. Diagnosis: groin strain, medically called adductor strain. These are the typical sports injury in football , ice hockey and sprinting. Per season, according to statistics, each player injured twice. The injury affects not only professionals, but also recreational athletes during training – both men and women.
This is how you recognize a groin strain
The groin strain can be felt in different ways. So there is an acute injury, which suddenly occurs after a straddle, slipping or a hurdle jump. Your signs:
- sudden, stabbing pain in the inner thigh or
- sudden, sharp pain in the groin
- Pain radiating to the abdomen
- Bruises in the groin and inner thighs
In addition, there is the groin strain, which slowly creeps in – for example through constant, but moderate overloading and wrong movements. Their signs are less massive. For example, it can be recognized by a slight pull in the groin, which can increase. There are also other possible symptoms:
- The pain gets worse when pressure on the pubis
- The pain gets worse with pressure on the muscle
- The pain gets worse as the legs squeeze and spread
Severity levels of adductor strain
Depending on the severity, sports medicine and orthopedics distinguish between three severity levels of groin strain:
1. degree: This is an overstretching. Less than five percent of the muscle fibers of the adductors are overstretched here. The complaints are not very strong. Turning the leg sideways hurts a bit.
2. degree : Here, more than five percent of the muscle fibers are already torn. This injury already causes severe pain, the leg rotation is limited.
3. degree: If more adductor fibers are torn, this is a third degree. The pain is severe, bruising (hematoma) may occur. Turning the leg is hardly possible. The pain persists even when the leg is not moved or strained.
What to do? First aid with groin strain
Any movement that hurts should now be avoided. Stretching is one of them. It is best to keep your legs high. This relieves the overstrained adductors. Ice and cold compresses help relieve pain and prevent bleeding and large hematomas. In the case of a first-degree groin strain, these measures often already suffice to trigger the overexpansion and, after two to three days, no longer cause discomfort. If it is a more pronounced groin strain, this should definitely be clarified by the orthopedist.
The causes of a groin strain
In one third of cases of groin strain in football, the thigh muscles are affected, the adductors. This muscle group begins in the pelvis and extends into the inside of the thighs.
The adductors are the opponents of the gluteal muscles, alternate with these while running constantly. They are particularly stressed during acceleration and sudden braking. In addition, the muscles allow the leg to be spread and re-introduced to the body center. This six-membered group is heavily impacted by football, ice hockey, hurdles, sprints, and skiing and ice skating .
With permanent overloading or sudden excessive stress, one to several muscles of the adductor group can be pulled. Most of the groin strain occurs in the transition between muscle and tendon or pubis and tendon.
Athlete bar affects mainly footballers
A special form of groin strain is the so-called “athlete’s bar”. These are chronic complaints and weakness in the inguinal canal. This affects especially footballers. When they play the ball from the inside of the foot, they strain the ligaments and muscles of the adductors extremely.
There are also a number of other causes for the groin strain. Sometimes it is the only minor, but recurring overload, such as footballers over long distances. Most of the injury, however, are sudden movements that overload the tendons or muscle of the adductor and tearing. This results in micro injuries in tendon and muscles to cracks. They cause severe pain, can cause bleeding and swelling.
Diagnosis: This is how the doctor determines a groin strain
The doctor, usually a sports physician or orthopedist, examines the groin and thighs carefully in their function. Often the description of the pain and the form of restriction of movement are already sufficient to make the diagnosis.
Ultrasound, x-ray or MRI examination then determines the damage in all details. In addition, it can be clarified whether a pelvic obliquity or hip deformities play a role. Such changes permanently overload the adductors. There is a high risk of penalties.
How the treatment of groin strain works
Physiotherapy and physiotherapy are the means of choice in the treatment of a groin strain. The overuse is alleviated, the overused adductors are slowly getting used to their normal function.
In stage 2 and 3 groin extenuations, the doctor often recommends painkillers to relieve severe discomfort, especially at the onset. For better healing, the following measures have also proven effective:
- heat therapy
- Electrotherapy
- Ointment dressings, such as with zinc
- medicated ointments for pain and inflammation
- lymphatic drainage
Depending on the severity of the groin strain, the healing process takes up to three months, sometimes even longer. Patience is important. During this time, all sports that require the adductors should be avoided.
For football professionals this usually means weeks of absence. During this time, however, they can perform strength training – of course only under medical supervision and after professional instruction. This way, athletes avoid that their performance drops completely.
Duration of the groin strain: Longer sports break is important
Only when everything has healed well, the adductor slowly get used to the strain again. Anyone who strains these muscles too quickly must expect a relapse and the risk of developing a sportsman’s belt with chronic discomfort.
Prevent bending and grooming
To a certain extent, a groin strain can be prevented. The prevention measures include, for example, the correct warm-up before the sport. If cold muscles and tendons are abruptly loaded, injuries can occur. Equally important after exercise is a slow cool down phase in which the muscles are gradually less stressed (cool-down).
The right shoes prevent stress
Last but not least, the shoes also play an important role when it comes to preventing a groin strain. Good sports shoes, which are adapted to the respective sport, ensure that joints, tendons and muscles are not burdened incorrectly.
Anyone who has had a groin strain more than once or even suffers from a sportsman’s band should be extra cautious, especially at the start of training. Here sometimes in consultation with the doctor special compression or warmth pants are useful. They relieve the adductors and protect them from injuries.