rectus femoris strain

[jackdavis]

I have a similar rectus femoris tear to the one in the picture on your website. I am wondering if you can give any outcome info for that injury, or put me in touch with the person who had that injury. My doc says there is nothing that can be done and I am trying to learn all I can on my own.

Thank You,
Jack

[injuryupdate]

Not sure what sport you play, but this tends to be a bigger problem in kicking sports like soccer players. The vast majority of people who get even a big divot in their rectus femoris after a strain find it becomes completely painless after time and doesn't give any problems with kicking, even though the cosmetic deformity lasts for life. There are plenty of professional football players with something similar that can continue their career. Since the divot is only present after a contraction it is not something to worry about when lying on the beach.

If there is chronic pain from the rectus femoris which restricts ability to play sport (lasting 6-12 months +) it is usually causes by some entrapped scar tissue, and occasionally a cortisone injection or minor surgery can help.

[jackdavis]

Thank You,

I have seen this injury in friends as well (smaller divot, when quad
is flexed). Mine is larger and noticable when not flexed, but much more
pronounced when flexed. I'm thinking I had a partial tear at patellar
tendon and the muscle retracted up, or a tear midbelly, or a
herniation midbelly. I continued to train through pain until it got much worse and the lump and larger divot developed. The injury was 4 years ago. Now I have hip problems, an often numb leg and considerable pain in my hip, thigh, knee and even in my heel.
I saw the picture under quad injuries on your website and wondered what happened to that guy and if he was able to treat his injury.

also, I am unable to open the pdfs or video on quad injuries. Is
there an alternate download site.

I appreciate your response. A forum like this is very helpful!!

[injuryupdate]

This doesn't sound great, but also doesn't sound like the typical pain of a chronic quad tear. In most people the divot, over time, becomes a cosmetic issue only and is non-painful. The divot usually occurs after a mid belly rectus femoris strain (half to 2/3rds of the way down the thigh), whereas the rectus strains causing chronic pain are usually a bit higher. However the pain is well-localised to the middle of the thigh. A rectus strain would not be expected to give pain below the knee and definitely not numbness in the heel. This sounds like a nerve entrapment somewhere (a slipped lumbar disc is usually the culprit for pain and numbness over a wide area). I would suggest another consult with a doctor, with a view to perhaps a CT scan or MRI scan of your lumbar spine to see whether you have slipped disc pinching a nerve. When presenting to the doctor, concentrate on the symptom that is stopping you from playing (e.g. pain, and not just in the quad) and numbness.

With respect to .pdf files, you need the Acrobat reader program, which can be downloaded for free using the link on the Injuryupdate front page. Then you can open all .pdfs. The videos on the quad page need the Winzip program as well, which can also be downloaded for free elsewhere on the web.

[jackdavis]

thanks for the information!

As a followup. It's not that I can't unzip or read pdfs, It's that the links appear inactive. I've tried it for a number of days thinking the server may be down.

Also, the picture on your website, which shows the guys thigh, is what I'm refering to. Its on the same page as the other quad strain info. I am curious what his diagnosis, treatment and outcome were. I feel mine is similar to it.

thanks again, you have a great site!!

[injuryupdate]

Thanks for the tip. I finally checked all of the links for the quads papers and they were all "broken links". Now hopefully repaired and you can download the files and videos for lots of interesting reading!

With respect to the patient, this is one of the few photos that I have taken from a doctor not associated with the site, so I don't know the patient or his outcome. Definitely the occasional patient needs rectus femoris surgery for chronic pain in the quads, but the divot itself if painless should be left alone. Any symptoms below the knee are due to a different injury. The femoral nerve, which supplies the quadriceps, finishes at the knee, so a symptom like heel numbness must be due to a different problem than the rectus femoris injury.

[Unregistered]

Hi. 2 years ago I accidentally got in the way of a lacrosse ball which was shot by the best shooter on our team. The ball snapped part of my rectus femoris and so when I contract my quad it bulges outta my leg like it's its job!

No real pain after all this time. I still play on the team, and still have all the quickness I originally had. It's a sweet party trick - all the fine honeys love it.

I got it misdiagnosed by my university's sports doc initially as a herniating muscle, but after seeing a specialist he confirmed it was indeed severed.

If you just discovered this on your leg, don't fret. Its been over two years and I'm still going strong!

Great site, by the way!

Mark
Trinity University TX

[Unregistered]

HI, i've been getting alot of soreness in my quads the morning after training and the other week i went to kick a ball the day after training and i felt a really sharp pain in my quad which lasted the day. this keeps happening quite regularly, can u help??

[Tal]

Hello, I have had a chronic inflammation of what was diagnosed as the rectus femoris (the tendon that attaches to my hip anyway) and it all began when I did too much running and sprinting. The pain has been real bad (it got worse with every episode) and it was located around my hip bone, in the top part of the groin, and during the current and worst occasion, my leg and even outer thigh and buttock too)

The thing is I am an Israeli, and seems like sports medicine isnt too advanced around here, because both the orthopedics I went to just told me to rest and take advil/etopan.

I was really hoping for a more detailed plan of how to get back to normal (without fearing a recurrence of this very painful situation).

I had stopped running during my last episode and had only swam and cycled for the 3 months afterwards- but the inflammation returned.

how much time should I rest and do no excercise????

what type of excercise is best?(I thought spinning would be good, but there is a lot standing up in the bike there, so maybe not, also the doctor said breast stroke swimming wasnt too good either because of the extensive movement of the hip joint)

what can I do other than take pills (and do I have to?)- can I massage the area? maybe use special creams for muscle pain?

Hope you can help
thanks much

Tal

[riz_piero]

I think I have the same injury, which is the rectus femoris. It is the muscle located above the knee cap right? I have been having on and off pains for quite some time now. The pain come and goes without warning. I do not even know when will the pain come. It will come even when I did nothing physical like running or sports. When it comes, it is quite a hassle. I can bend my knee but it will be painful. Can anybody help and tell me more about my injury? Thanks alot.