SOFT TISSUE INJURIES
At The Injury Clinic, our physiotherapists will often describe soft tissue injuries as injuries to the muscular and tendinous structures of the body.
- Muscle: A band of fibres that contract and lengthen to produce movement at a joint.
- Tendon: Connective tissue joining muscles to bones. Help store and use energy to produce movement at joints and reduce the stress on muscles.
The physiotherapy management of soft tissue injuries can vary depending on the tissue source and the type of injury. We can often break soft tissue injuries into categories based on their tissue source; muscles and tendons.
MUSCLE
ACUTE INJURY: Injuries that occur from a known or sometimes unknown incident. Signs and symptoms tend to develop rapidly.
Contusions (bruises)
- Often caused by a direct force applied to the body, often occurs during sport when being kicked or making contact with a player and result in compression and bleeding into the soft tissue (hematoma).
- Signs and symptoms include swelling and/or discolouration.
Tear
- Muscles over-stretching or contracting too quickly, resulting in a partial or complete tear or rupture of the muscular fibres.
- Signs and symptoms include: focal tenderness, swelling, possible discolouration and bruising and pain on movement.
- Depending on the location of a tear within the associated muscle rehabilitation time frames can vary.
OVERUSE INJURY: Injuries that typically develop over time without a specific mechanism or incident.
- Often caused as a result of external load (often exercise or work load) exceeding tissue (muscle) capacity.
- Signs and symptoms typically include slower development, inflammatory pattern, ‘tight’ muscles, pain referral and focal muscle pain
TENDON
ACUTE INJURY: injuries that occur from a known or sometimes unknown incident with signs and symptoms tending to develop rapidly
Tear
- Can be caused by tissue overstretching or contracting too quickly, resulting in a partial or complete tear/rupture of the tendon fibres
- Signs and symptoms include: focal tenderness, swelling, possible discolouration and bruising and pain on movement.
- Depending on the location of a tear within the associated tendon rehabilitation time frames can vary. Tendon tears/ruptures tend to require longer rehabilitation timeframes compared to muscle
OVERUSE INJURY: Often diagnosed as a tendinopathy and can be further broken down into stages:
STAGE 1 : Reactive Tendinopathy
Occurs after an acute overload through a tendon over a short period of time. This stage can present with pain towards the end of an initial exercise. It can lead to a thickening through the tendon, and patients frequently describe the tendon as feeling ‘tight’. As it is caused by an acute spike in load, if caught early, this stage can be reversed rather quickly if the athlete rests for a short period of time and focuses on releasing the corresponding muscle.
STAGE 2: Dysrepair
Associated with greater matrix breakdown inside the tendon, with tendon cells becoming more prominent and some ingrowth of blood vessels and nerves. This occurs with more ongoing overload through the tendon, and tends to be more irritable and pain from exercise can come on earlier. Depending on contributing factors can take longer to recover from.
STAGE 3: Degenerative Tendinopathy
This is the ‘end-stage’ for tendon overuse injuries, with cell death occurring in the tendon. These tendons are highly painful and difficult to exercise with. It typically occurs in an older population but also can affect younger people or elite athletes with long term tendon overload. At this stage, the tendons are at a high risk of rupture.
Depending on your soft tissue injury (muscle vs tendon) and presentation, physiotherapy intervention may vary
Physiotherapy management at The Injury Clinic for soft tissue injuries will often include:
- Detailed assessment of your current injury
- Discussions regarding your current goals and aims
- Development of a management plan to both improve your symptoms, improve tissue health and function and prevent injury recurrence
Physiotherapy management at The Injury Clinic for soft tissue injuries may include:
- Dry needling; soft tissue techniques; joint manipulation
- Training load advice and education
- Involvement of other team members at the clinic (Strength Coach; Dietician etc)
- Referral to other health practitioners as indicated
If you are currently battling a soft tissue injury, please don’t hesitate to get in touch and see one of our Geelong-based physios today. CLICK HERE to book online.
TENDINOPATHY
At The Injury Clinic, we see it most commonly in the achilles tendons, gluteal tendons as well as the rotator cuff in the shoulder.
OVERUSE RUNNING INJURIES
Running related injuries are some of the more common presentations we see at The Injury Clinic.
STRENGTH & CONDITIONING
Strength Coaches at The Injury Clinic provide clients with individualised strength programs to help them achieve their goals.
Schedule your next visit
If you’re interested in booking an appointment with one of our team members, contact our clinic today and we’ll be happy to find time for a consultation.
Schedule ConsultExplore our physiotherapy services
Musculoskeletal
Physio
At The Injury Clinic Physiotherapy, we work closely with our clients to get them back doing the things they love as soon as possible.
Sports
Physio
The Injury Clinic Physiotherapy works with recreational to elite athletes to keep them injury free and achieving their goals.
Dry
Needling
All physiotherapists at The Injury Clinic are qualified and experienced in dry needling as a treatment technique.
Running Injuries
Physiotherapists at The Injury Clinic Physiotherapy have a special interest in the diagnosis and management of running-related injuries.
Women's Health
Physiotherapy
We have physiotherapists with a special interest in Women's Health, including pre and post partum presentations. Let us work with you to stay fit, active and healthy.
Pre & Post-Operative
Physio
Physiotherapists at The Injury Clinic Physiotherapy work closely with surgeons to ensure best outcomes post surgery.
Injury Q&A
Our clinicians have been answering all your questions!
Running Analysis
The goal of a running analysis is to identify aspects of your technique that may be contributing to injury or impacting on efficiency.
