Clarke's back to be monitored

[Danny]

Batsman Clarke mindful of back problem
June 30, 2005 - 5:34PM
SMH

Australian batsman Michael Clarke accepts he will have to monitor a mystery back complaint he suffered a week ago throughout his cricket career.

The 24-year-old missed two matches earlier this triangular one-day series after experiencing pain and stiffness in the lower back after a training session in Chester-le-Street a week ago.

He returned against England at Edgbaston last Tuesday and afterwards admitted the back problem was something he would have to be mindful of, having experienced back pain from a bulging disc while in the West Indies in 2003.

Clarke planned to continue strengthening his lower back to ensure the complaint did not develop into anything more serious than occasional recurring pain.

"I've just got to keep my abs strong and my back really strong knowing I've had a back problem before," he said.

Australia is yet to fully diagnose exactly why Clarke experienced the latest bout of pain, but the problem was enough to confine the young batsman to bed.
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"I spent four days in bed and it was pretty boring really, and it was hard work watching the boys on TV," he said.

[hhh]

Since when has ab work and low back work ever been shown to be effective for managing an acute episode of lumbago? Since when has bed rest been shown to be anything but detrimental and an effective predictor for chronicity? Someone should tell Clarke that his injury management is a joke and to tell his primary care practitioner they are stuck in the 1970s. An embarrassment for all medical officials involved.

[Danny]

May not be evidence based, but Alcott seems intent on bed rest for Clarke's back injury.

"You can't cure him, only treat his condition and make him functional again, which always includes bed rest."

Clarke fit to bat again
From Tony Lawrence in Manchester
August 14, 2005
FOXSPORTS

AUSTRALIA expects Michael Clarke to be fit to bat in the second innings of the third Ashes Test but he may be forced to bat down the order for the second time in the match.

"Michael is coming along really well," Australia physiotherapist Errol Alcott said. "He's moving about more freely today."

The 24-year-old batsman, who comes in at No.5, suffers from a long-term back condition. He was forced to miss most of the first two days of the match with back pains and retired to bed on Friday.

When Australia's top-order collapsed, he was rushed to the ground but, batting at No.8, looked restricted before being dismissed for seven.

Australia, replying to England's first innings of 444 and battling to save the game, moved on to 7-264 on a rain-affected day overnight. The series is tied at 1-1.

If Clarke is not fit to field in England's second innings - Australia has yet to make a decision on that - he would again have to move down the order, although Alcott was confident he would be able to bat without pain this time.

"There are still a few signs he's not 100 per cent but hopefully tomorrow he should be nearly right," Alcott added.

"We are aiming him for to be unencumbered so he can play his shots."

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Clarke has suffered from back disc problems for the past few years and also missed a one-day match earlier in the Ashes tour with the same problem.

"I'm more concerned over the long term. We are still trying to find out what is causing his problem," Alcott added. "You can't cure him, only treat his condition and make him functional again, which always includes bed rest."

Alcott added that the problem could also have consequences for Clarke's occasional left-arm spin bowling. "It's an area we need to look at," he said.

Clarke averages 42.04 in his previous 14 Tests. He took an extraordinary six for nine runs against India in Mumbai in November 2004.

[Danny]

Steve Giulieri talks us through Clarke's back injury.

Rest key for Clarke
By Peter Kogoy
August 18, 2005

THE back problem that plagued Michael Clarke during the third Ashes Test at Old Trafford is a common complaint among young sports people, a leading sports medicine specialist said yesterday.


Steve Giulieri, a Sydney physiotherapist who has Clarke as a patient, says the back complaint is treatable and shouldn't be seen as career-threatening.

"There is no issue with Michael long-term. He'll be just fine," Giulieri said.

Clarke was a frustrated spectator for much of the first four days of the third Test after a relapse of a back problem which first flared in his junior cricketing days, forcing him off the field and to his hotel room for bed rest.

By the time he batted on the fifth day, his back was fine and he scored 39 runs in Australia's second innings before Glenn McGrath and Brett Lee held out the English bowling attack for a draw.

Giulieri said the best treatment for Clarke was to rest and for him to address strengthening the lower leg and improve hip flexibility issues with specific stretching exercises.

"Michael suffers from what is known as lumbar spine injury, a common complaint found among young people when they go through a rapid growth spurt," he said.

"This in turn leads to a shortening of the leg muscles, especially in the hamstrings and a resultant lack of flexibility causes pressure on the lower lumbar discs.

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"The disc itself is made of cartilage which does repair itself, but is slow healing. The outer wall of the disc is pain-sensitive and an acute tear in the disc is extremely painful and debilitating which leads to severe back spasms and the inability to move.

"When an individual (like Clarke) continues to play sport without allowing enough time for the disc wall to heal itself is when a chronic back problem can occur.

"The condition does require maintenance, nothing more complicated than stretching and back-strengthening exercises.

"I see this problem regularly in my clinic in young adults who have undergone a rapid growth spurt.

"In almost all cases if the causative issues are rectified and flexibility and strength is maintained, the problem goes away."

The Australian

[hhh]

aaah the old "growing pains" diagnosis. Cutting edge stuff this.

[Unregistered]

May be he's just keeping it simple for the press and the masses, you know the old "putting it layman's terms" thing. Though seriously that explanation is pretty primitive even for the tabloids.

[GWJ]

"This in turn leads to a shortening of the leg muscles, especially in the hamstrings and a resultant lack of flexibility causes pressure on the lower lumbar discs."

**** Shouldnt that be "relative shortening of the leg muscles"?