How to treat a muscle strain

The muscle strain is a type of an injury that is actually a pull and which affects the muscle, so as the connected tendons. But, more serious damage that is likely to occur is the tearing of the muscle fibers and those tendons and the rupture of the capillaries in that area. Of course, the nerves in that area are affected too, and because of that, the sensation of the pain is present.

The possible complications of a muscle strain are the open wounds, contusions and swellings.

When it comes to symptoms, one can be sure that the strain has occurred if he or she suffers from the pain even when resting, also when there is a significant amount of the sensitivity of the affected muscle and sometimes it is not possible to use the muscle.

But, there are some more severe symptoms, such as the high temperature of the body, or there can be a process of swelling in the area, or the wound might be open. In any of these cases, the medical attention should be sought.

The specialist can even choose the surgical procedure as the treatment, and it depends on the seriousness of the strain.

But, as far as the first aid and the home treatment are concerned, the first thing one should do is to rest. The first aid includes the action of the applying the ice onto the strained muscle (but not directly to the skin), lifting up the affected spot (so that the swelling could be reduced) and stretching the muscle carefully. It is also okay to use the anti-inflammatory drugs.

The next step in taking care of the problem is to avoid anything that could lead to some undesirable complications, such as, for example, injuring the same muscle again.

These steps of the home treatment are very beneficial, since they are very similar to the rehabilitation process which would be recommended by the specialist.

But, one should be conscious of the actions that have the function of reducing the risk of such an injury. Those are the warm up routine before doing the exercises and the stretching before and after every training. Also, the exercises, as the part of the rehabilitation program should be introduced into the new lifestyle. Those exercises are mostly based on the stretching. Of course, the previously mentioned activities must be combined with the training routine.

And finally, if one performs all these activities, he or she has big chances of the total recovery.