The diagnosis of muscle tear is not particularly difficult, and, in most cases, it is enough for a doctor to study the clinical signs and conduct a physiological examination of a patient. An exception may be closed type of tear, for the diagnosis of which it is necessary to undergo a medical examination – MRI.

Clinical picture   

Muscle tear occurs with excessive physical exertion. This type of injury is quite severe, and, depending on the severity, the wound that appeared at the site of tear can heal on its own, or the torn muscle will forever lose its ability to contract.

Tear of abdominal muscles, tear of the calf muscle or biceps muscle, in most cases, occurs in professional athletes who engage in power sports and begin training without warming up the muscles properly. The main symptoms of muscle tear are as follows:

• strong pain;
• appearance of bruising;
• inability to move a limb.

If there is a tear of thigh muscles, a person cannot stand on one leg, if there is a tear of biceps of the arm – there is no way to move the upper limb. If a shoulder muscle tear has occurred partially, the pain will not be as intense as with a complete tear, but a severe hematoma will appear at the site of injury. With a partial tear of a muscle, it does not lose its contractile function, but if timely treatment is not done, the disease will aggravate.

A tear of pectoral muscle is accompanied by severe chest pain, the appearance of a bruise, asymmetry of upper extremities is possible. Tear of subscapularis muscle provokes strong pain syndrome, which can give to the lower back.

The tear of the quadriceps muscle is one of the most serious injuries that can provoke hemorrhage in the knee joint and impair the functionality of the entire limb. Tear of biceps of the shoulder can completely immobilize the arm. With a partial tear of biceps, pain is moderate but constant, limb mobility partially preserved. In case of a complete tear, pain syndrome is very strong, it is impossible to stop with medications, there is an extensive hematoma.

Muscle tears during lying bench press in the famous strongman Scott Mendelssohn.

Treatment

Partial type muscle tear treatment is carried out at home: it is enough to fix the site of the lesion with a bandage and, in case of severe pain, take painkillers. Before conducting treatment, it is necessary to diagnose muscle tear. Behind the common symptoms, there can be hidden complications, which, without a temporary diagnosis, will lead to serious consequences.

In case of a complete tear of muscles, an operation is carried out in most cases, since the wound that appeared at the tear site cannot always be healed on its own. With this complication, a muscle is no longer contract, and it is impossible to restore its functionality in the future. The purpose of a surgical operation in case of a muscle tear is to correctly connect its fibers, restore the integrity of blood vessels if they were injured, and prevent the onset of an inflammatory process.

After the surgery, a patient needs to undergo a rehabilitation course to restore the normal functioning of the muscle. Exercise physiotherapy must be done very carefully and slowly, any sudden movement or excessive physical exertion can lead to muscle injury or a repeated tear. It is also necessary to undergo rehabilitation after a partial muscle tear to accelerate the healing process and prevent repeated trauma.