|
2004/07/05, 12:13 AM
I appear to have a serious case of hip lateral rotator tendinitis. The entire situation is complicated, but what I need are effective stretching and strenghtening exercises that I am able to do despite having broken the fibula and sprained the ankle in the other leg. Because I have no way to get surgery that I may need to be able to use the sprained ankle properly to walk, it could be a long time before I am able to walk normally and no longer put excessive strain on these muscles.
I have severe pain over the point of bone (probably ischius but I can't tell from diagrams positions of ischius and pelvic bones when sitting) that connects with the chair when you sit down, and immediately around it. Area is very sore to touch, crepity and possibly swollen. It prevents me from doing straight leg raises, raising the leg to go up a step, and climbing stairs. The back of hip and entire back of leg frequently go spastic, causing extreme pain and difficulty to mve anything at all. Pain is aggravated by sitting, particularly in moving vehicles, climbing, and walking. Ice and aspirin temporarily help.
I additionally have strained hip flexor muscles and the remains of a groin strain, but the standard exercises and tactics are working on those problems.
Buttocks pain started abruptly almost a week ago. I was hit by a car a week earlier, and broke the fibula and sprained the ankle badly in my OTHER leg, and got severely bruised and swollen knee and ankle in this leg - and the hip has had one problem or another since the accident. One of the points of bone on the outside of the hip had a slightly swollen bruise, just bad enough to be hard to sleep on. The broken fibula appears likely to be caused by teh sprained ankle; there is pain over the syndesmotic region (structures that connect the tibia and fibula). Fibula has a complete, slightly displaced, complete transverse fracture a little more than halfway up the shaft, at or just under the largest part of the calf. Since it didn't particularly need a cast and I live alone with no transportation and must work, I refused a cast and use ace bandages and a walking boot, and crutches.
It soon proved completely impossible to keep weight off the broken leg with crutches because of extreme hip pain every time I tried, in the bone socket itself, so I have been walking with partial weight on the broken leg. I must climb into a loft bed at night. Until a couple of days ago walking itself was extremely difficult, though the broken leg doesn't often make much of a fuss while I'm walking on it. It is not possible to use the ankle of my broken leg.
According to my research, the lateral rotators of the hip do most of the things I do differently in order to function with my injuries, and actively oppose some of them. I am trying hard to walk as normally as I can and the broken leg is capable of some climbing,but when I have to walk a mile to the bus stop, I'm not going to do the two inch shuffle.
There is some signs of strain of the hamstring muscle that runs from the ilium to the lower leg. I have previously had trouble with the long tendon that hangs up at the end of the thigh bone when one bends or straightens the knee past 35 degrees, that was relieved by doing stretches. The entire lateral side of the knee is extremely bruised and swollen, at the spot where that tendon tends to hang up, and the head of the fibula is very bruised and sore. NOne of it is fractured. But the tendon could lack its normal mobility in that region, and it also passes through the sore area in my buttock. I can't do the stretch for that either because it requires extreme vagus stress on the broken lateral leg bone, which immediately tells me about it when I try.
All exercises for the lateral rotators of the hip that I can find on the web except for the two most passive and least effective, require twisting and turning the other leg at cross angles to the body.
I need effective exercises for the hip rotators that don't require putting my broken leg and ankle at odd angles or put lateral or vagus or valgus stress on that leg or on the ankle. Can someone please recommend some. And please don't send me to the library - it's hard to walk!
Yours,
Dora Smith
villandra@austin.rr.com
|
|
|
|
2004/07/06, 11:02 AM
Wow, Dora.
I think you need to give your body some time off to heal from this trauma. You are experiencing the after effects of the accident/trauma and it will be a while before everything settles down.
A chiroparctor or massage therapist may be able to help you, but I wouldn't try stretching it on your own, at least not until it has calmed down considerably.
Keep icing it, on the hour, for 15 minutes and continue with some type of nsaid (didn't the doctors give you any pain meds?).
--------------
\"Inscribe this on the charm that dangles from your navel, girls. Guys, tattoo this on your biceps:
Building muscle and might builds strong minds and character. Respect and humility come from lifting weights and feeding yourself with care. And from these distinguished qualities a great nation of people is built, by God. (Of course the God part is your choice, friend.)\" Dave Draper
|
|
2004/08/07, 10:33 PM
Doctor did say I could go on with my life, walk, take off wlking boot - but he didn't provide much help (or even diagnosis beyond that.
First, I'm sure I've got a hamstring injury in my left hip - and stretching seems to be the single most important factor with those lateral rotators. I also stretch them.
Problem; after six and a half weeks, it isn't getting better, except for a sudden spurt of improvement after I changed to a wider bicycle seat.
I've virtually given up on strengthening exercises because they seem to make it worse.
Question 1. I lowered my bicycle seat to make it easier and safer to ride with the broken leg; is this likely to aggravate the hamstring injury? It sure doesn't like bicycle riding!
Question 2. From what I'm finding tonight on my NEXT question, I may be doing my hamstring exercises completley wrong. How far and by which technique should I stretch them?
Second question is, since I am going on with my life, shouldn't I stretch muscles that are stiff, tight and sore and pull on the broken bone? Aren't they going to do damage if I don't? I outright have a shinsplint and on-and-off pain in the sole and heel of my foot with one set of muscles.
Hamstring stretches, done as my PT's have always taught me over the years, by grasping foot of straight leg and pulling my upper body toward my foot as far as possible, seem to be aggravating my fibula fracture. I'm variously reading that I shouldn't actually stretch farther than I need to, whatever that means, and that I shouldn't do certain kinds of stretches such as grasping my toes, and even that possibly I ought to be stretching my hamstrings with my leg bent! Understand, until now the only reason I stretched my hamstrings was to avoid dislocating my patella, which always happens when my hamstrings are strained at the knee, which used to happen alot. Also, those hamstrings do sometimes stiffen up and pull on the fracture as well as my knee all by themselves.
Question: What is the method I should be using for hamstring stretches?
Thanks!
Yours,
Dora Smith
|
