Shin splints occur when you have pain in the front of your lower leg. The pain of shin splints is from the inflammation of the muscles, tendons, and bone tissue around your shin. Shin splints are a common problem for runners, gymnasts, dancers, and military recruits. However, there are things you can do to heal from shin splints and prevent them from getting worse.
Causes
Shin splints are an exercise problem. You get shin splints from overloading your leg muscles, tendons, or shinbone. Shin splints happen from overuse with too much activity or an increase in training. Most often, the activity is high impact and repetitive exercise of your lower legs.
Common activities that cause shin splints are:
- Running, especially on hills. If you are a new runner, you are at greater risk for shin splints.
- Upping your number of days of training.
- Increasing the amount of time in training or going a longer distance.
- Doing exercise that has frequent stops and starts, such as dancing, basketball, or military training.
You are more at risk for shin splints if you:
- Have flat feet or very rigid foot arches.
- Work out on hard surfaces, such as running on the street or playing basketball or tennis on a hard court.
- Do not wear the proper shoes.
- Wear worn out shoes. Running shoes lose over half of their shock-absorbing ability after 250 miles of use.
Symptoms Include:
- Pain in one or both legs.
- Sharp or dull, aching pain in the front of your shin.
- Pain when you push on your shins.
- Pain that gets worse during and after exercise.
- Pain that gets better with rest.
If you have severe shin splints, your legs may hurt even when you are not walking.
Decrease Your Activity
Expect that you need at least two to four weeks of rest from your sport or exercise. Avoid repetitive exercise of your lower leg for one to two weeks. Keep your activity to just the walking that you do during your regular day. Try other low impact activities as long as you do not have pain, such as swimming or biking. After two to four weeks, if the pain is gone, you can start your usual activities, but increase your activity level slowly. If the pain returns, stop exercising right away. Know that shin splints can take three to six months to heal. Do not rush back into your sport or exercise. You could injure yourself again.
Reduce Your Pain and Swelling
There are several things you can do to ease discomfort. Ice your shins several times a day for three days or until pain is gone. Do stretching exercises. Take ibuprofen, naproxen, or aspirin to decrease swelling and to help with pain, but know that these medicines have side effects and can cause ulcers and bleeding. Talk to your doctor about how much you can take. Use arch supports, and talk with your doctor and physical therapist about wearing the proper shoes and about special shock-absorbing insoles or orthotics to wear inside your shoes. Work with a physical therapist, as they can use therapies that may help with the pain and teach you exercises to strengthen your leg muscles.
Prevent Shin Splints When Exercising Again
To prevent shin splints from recurring, be pain-free for at least two weeks before returning to your exercise routine, and don’t overdo it. Do not return to your previous level of intensity; instead, go slower for a shorter time. Increase your training slowly. Warm up and stretch before and after exercise, and ice your shins after exercise to decrease swelling. Avoid hard surfaces, wear proper shoes with good support and padding, and cross train and add in low impact exercise, such as swimming or biking.
When to Call the Doctor
Shin splints are most often not serious. Call your healthcare provider if you have pain even with rest, icing, and pain relievers after several weeks. You may also call if you are not sure whether your pain is caused by shin splints, if swelling in your lower legs is getting worse, or if your shin is red and feels hot to the touch.
Your provider may take an X-ray or perform other tests to make sure you do not have a stress fracture. You will also be checked to make sure you do not have another shin problem, such as tendonitis or compartment syndrome.
Information from the National Library of Medicine, www.nlm.nih.gov.
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