A groin strain, is a partial tear of the fibres of the adductor muscles on the inside of your leg. There are 3 muscles located here that are your primary 'adductors.' There primary role in movement is to 'adduct' or bring your leg closer towards you.
The three muscles primarily responsible for this are the:
Adductor Brevis
Adductor Longus
Adductor Magnus
As indicated in the picture below, these muscles originate on the pelvis on the pubic bone and attach on the lower part of our femur on the inside of our leg.
Who is commonly effected?
The most commonly effected people experiencing groin strains are athletes that compete in sports requiring running, rapid changes of directions, kicking and tackling/physical contact. Sports such as AFL, Rugby, Soccer and Hockey are the highest risk of these injuries. Currently statistics indicate that 5-18% of all sporting-related injuries are related to groin strains.
What are the Causes of a Groin Strain?
Groin strains can occur due to multiple reasons, a few are listed below.
Increased stress on the muscles in the groin and thigh from training loads.
Muscles are forced or suddenly over-stretched.
Imbalances in hip and glute strength.
General conditioning
Previous injury.
Symptoms
General pain and tenderness in the area
Possible swelling and bruising
Pain when squeezing your knees together
Pain when raising your knee
Pain whilst walking or running depending on the severity of your injury/
Treatment of Groin Strains
Treatment for groin strains will often depend on the severity of the strain. Grade I and 2 strains involving partial tears will often be conservatively managed. Initially this will involve 'active rest' involving specific exercises to help strengthen your groins. This could also be used alongside manual therapy techniques such as dry needling or soft-tissue massage. Evidence has suggested that somewhere between 4 and 16 weeks may be the required time limit to complete a full rehabilitation program to ensure your groin can return back to full strength. It's also important that as you return to sport you continue to strengthen other areas of your body as well, such as your core, quads and glutes. These can help to further reduce your risk of re-injuring your groin as you return to sport.
For Grade 3 injuries, surgery may be required depending on the severity of the tear and the location. These injuries take 16+ weeks to heal and require a long extensive rehab process to improve strength.
Stay tuned to our socials on Instagram for exercises you can do for rehab for your groin!
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