Shin Splints
What Are Shin Splints?
Shin splints is an ‘umbrella term’ meaning it covers a variety of specific diagnosis. The main three issues that are classed as shin splints are stress fracture, compartment syndrome, and medial tibial periosteitis. At The Physiotherapy Place, it’s the latter diagnosis that we see most commonly and this happens when the muscles of the lower leg become very tight and begin to pull on the lining of the shin bone, creating inflammation and the lower leg pain associated with shin splints.
Why Do I Get Shin Splints?
Shin splints happens when the load placed on the structures of the lower leg exceeds the capacity to withstand that load. Once this happens then there will be tissue breakdown and inflammation. It most commonly happens due to an increase in running training load. This can be from:
increasing running distance too quickly
running on more challenging terrain or up and down hills
not having long enough recovery time between runs.
Once you feel symptoms of shin splints, the problem has likely been building up for several weeks or months prior to that moment.
What Does It Feel Like When You Have Shin Splints?
You will typically feel pain in the lower leg around the shin bone. The pain normally builds up as you run and continues to worsen until you have to stop. Often it will settle with a period of rest but will still feel very tender to the touch. Even if the pain settles with rest, it will commonly start up again upon running unless it has been treated appropriately.
How Do We Treat Shin Pain?
A number of steps should be taken:
identify any tight muscles or imbalances that are causing the pain and inflammation in the shin bone
reduce training load so that further damage is avoided
inflammation management including ultrasound and massage
release tight muscles with massage, dry needling, and stretching
address other factors that might be feeding into the issue such as flat feet or improper footwear
once all of this has been implemented and pain has settles then a return to training plan can be started
Do Shin Splints Go Away?
Yes shin splints go away with the correct management and time. As long as the training and biomechanical factors that caused the problem in the first place are corrected, it isn’t usually a problem that recurs.
What Is The Recovery Time?
In most cases this will be a few months. As with any overuse injury this will vary depending on the degree of tissue damage and the specific diagnosis made.
Can You Run On Shin Splints?
Shin splints will usually require a break from running for a period of time in order for it to settle down. The pain will usually build up the further you run and will continue to worsen until you stop. Keeping running instead of resting will only delay the recovery.
What Exercise Can I Do With Shin Pain?
You can often do a low-impact activity such as swimming or cycling and this won’t aggravate your shin splints. A good stretch to start with is the calf stretch. My preferred method to do this is to stand facing a wall and take a step back with one foot, keeping your foot pointing forward and heel on the floor. You should feel the stretch in the back of the leg that is behind you. This is good in the first instance to release some of the lower leg muscles.
What Will A Physio Do ?
A physiotherapist will give you a specific diagnosis, and develop a treatment program best suited for that. Treatment will consist of soft tissue release, dry needling, joint mobilisation, correction of running technique, and a specific exercise program in order to return to activity.