Hamstring Avulsion (complete tear from pelvis)

[cmg8878]

@Tammy- thanks for the list- I’m running my last minute errands today, maybe I need an XL fanny pack, are they back in style yet? LOL

@John- sitting on the toilet after my injury WAS torture. However, I did get really good at balancing. I will not have a brace, so the raised toilet won’t help me; I’ll be doing the same tilted/lean/hang onto sink position starting tomorrow. My family also has been skiing and barefooting for so many years and never knew this injury was possible just “getting up” behind the boat! Good luck today partner, I’m right behind ya.

[Nikke]

Good luck to surgeries John and Christina. I just heard today that my surgery is postponed to 10th of August. Well it's not a big problem to me - I am now 6 weeks post injury and the surgery was supposed to be next tuesday but is now postponed to friday.

The weird part in my injury is that the right after the injury the pain was 6/10, the next day something like 4/10 and now the leg is painless. If I would not know I have a ruptured tendon and muscle I would be propably be playing and sporting almost normally. The only thing reminding me of the injury is that occasionally on uneven surface my knee feels little unstable - it kind of over straightens, I guess it has something to do with the fact that hamstrings are slowing down the movement of shin at the end of kicking movement. But I guess it's like my ortho told me, muscle injuries do heal even without treatment , however that may have some side effects like lacking some range in movement, lacking muscle power etc....

Best regards,
Nikke

[cmg8878]

Thanks Nikke. I had a great workout last night. But as good as it felt, it reminded me that something is definitely "off". However, no pain, so I know exactly how you feel. I have to constantly remind myself that I am doing this for the long haul. So I can go back to pushing myself with the security of knowing everything IS attached. I hope to be able to share some good posts after surgery regarding a quick recovery.

[RehabAgain]

Hi Bublik,

I will try and piece things back together in terms of return to activity, the old posts may be better due to my memory (or lack of memory)!! Did get into PT fairly quickly, I believe like 2 weeks after surgery. Started PT twice a week for a number of weeks and then finally went down to once a week and then once every couple of weeks. Overall I went to PT for close to 6 months I believe, mainly because I wanted to return to as close to 100% as I could.

My main activity is triathlon. I was back in the water fairly quickly, within 2-3 weeks I think. I know I was still on crutches and would hobble over to the pool with them. I would swim with a pull buoy to make sure I was not using my legs at all but it felt great to just get some exercise I remember. Once thing I think really helped was not having the brace. Keeping some range of motion in the leg was key, just had to be careful not to engage the hamstring.

About 4-5 weeks in I was on the elliptical and stationary biking. I was off the crutches at 4-5 weeks as well. This was very slow biking and very upright. It took me much, much longer to be able to get into a normal aero position on my tri bike.

The stretching and strengthening were key for me. Lots of work on this not only at PT but also every day at home. Also the massage and electrical stimulus that I received at PT helps lots in breaking down the scar tissue. At first I had some "solid lumps" in the scar area but after a couple of months these were gone. The knee and hip range of motion were the first things we worked on, then it was trying to bring my knee to my chest when lying on my back, this took a long time I remember, maybe 4-6 months.

Back to the exercise, my quad was gone when I first started back. I was really surprised at how weak it was. For many weeks I was doing mini squats and then full squats and lunges to get this strength back. This was needed to endure the pounding of running. I believe it was around 8 weeks I started to jog, very slow and not for very long. I would say it was 12 weeks out before I was really jogging again for > 30 mins and at a decent pace.

Another key is to keep doing the strengthening and stretching exercises on your own. This was (and still is) hard for me as you tend to feel that you are "back" and then the lunges, squats, and extra stretching seem to be the first to go.

I did a tri race a couple of weeks ago and I was 15% slower than the same race a few years back. Most of this was just due to fitness level and training rather than a result of the surgery.

Good luck to everyone out there, hang in there - things do improve greatly with time.

[jnbobsled]

i can't get this stupid thing to reply but i am post surgery and feeling great

[jnbobsled]

Dr brief: I ruptured all 3 hamstring tendons. There was a little tendon left at the attachment though on the ischial tuberosity which is good. That will promote healing of the same type of tissue it is believed. Also tendon only retracted 1cm so my incesion is only 4" and my leg is able to be locked streight instead of having a negetive bend. That will allow for shorter rehab time.

[rpolaw]

Hello all,

Four months post surgery. Three complete tears, one retracted 5". I'm interested in anyone's rehab tricks and tips.

I've been going to pt twice a week, plus swimming, biking, running and weights in between. I think the bike has been a great exercise since high rpm encourages nerve development and pushing the hills helps with strength and endurance. Running has been tough. The atrophy during six weeks braced was amazing. I started with a minute on, a minute off and built from there. I'm up to three continuous miles with 400s and 800s at 8 min/mile pace. I use short strides, high turnover. At age 55, my best pre injury pace for the 400 was 1:22+\-, so I have some room to improve.

With weights, I recommend going heavy with low reps for upper body-- 5x5 reps. The heavy lifting encourages the hormones that help the hammies etc. For the hammies, I started very slowly. No weight single leg Romanian deadlifts were/are crucial. Single leg squats if you can. I was cleared for deadlifts and squats and started with just the bar. I 'm up to 5 x 225. Kettlebell swings restore and strengthen the whole posterior chain. A good coach/therapist is essential for form with all weight exercises because the injury encourages bad form, imbalance and cheating. I've also been seeing a chiro and an ART guy to help with the collateral damage from the tears and surgery.

I don't believe in the isolating leg curls some people use since I prefer functional crossfit style exercise. I'll do a Olympic distance tri on 9/15 if the running comes back. If not I'll quit after the bike ride.

[cmg8878]

Post surgery- day 4 and feeling good! No pain pills needed after the day of surgery, just took an Advil for the ache. The cold therapy machine is a GREAT invention. He said the surgery went good, there was no scar tissue (at 9 weeks), he made a 3-inch incision and used 2 anchors. I am SO thankful I don’t have a brace. I have to be really careful to not activate my hamstring. It feels good to be able to flex my other leg muscles though and seems to help the circulation. I took a shower today and my mom shaved my legs, yay!

[BooBoo]

Hey rpolaw,

Glad to hear your recovery is going well!

I am considering torn hamstring surgery and live an hour from Portland, ME. Dr. Huffard's name was given and looking for some feedback. We're you pleased with the surgery, how many of these surgeries has he done, if you know? Why did you decide on him?

I also heard of someone in Bangor but can't remember his name. Kind of wondering if I should do it at all but I am an active 59 and have young grand kids I do a lot with. Any info would be appreciated.

Barb

[goal tender]

Post surgery- day 4 and feeling good! No pain pills needed after the day of surgery, just took an Advil for the ache. The cold therapy machine is a GREAT invention. He said the surgery went good, there was no scar tissue (at 9 weeks), he made a 3-inch incision and used 2 anchors. I am SO thankful I don’t have a brace. I have to be really careful to not activate my hamstring. It feels good to be able to flex my other leg muscles though and seems to help the circulation. I took a shower today and my mom shaved my legs, yay!

Yay, glad everything went well. You will back doing your thing in no time.

Tammy