General Discussion Triathlon Talk » Overuse Injury - Compartment Syndrome Rss Feed  
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2005-03-02 12:36 AM


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Subject: Overuse Injury - Compartment Syndrome
After training for NYC marathon last year I was diagnosed with compartment syndrome last September. The doc gave me 2 options: prolonged period of no running or fasciotomy. I decided to stop running for 6 months. In the meantime, I picked up cycling and swimming to prepare for my first tri this summer! My training HAD been going great until I started running again last month. The pain is already back and I haven’t been able to get past 3 miles @ a 9 min pace. I hate to admit that I might need to have a fasciotomy. Has anyone had one? How long was recovery time?


2005-03-09 4:26 PM
in reply to: #124286

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Subject: RE: Overuse Injury - Compartment Syndrome
You are probably looking a about 6 months of recovery for a fasciotomy. First they leave a small hole in your leg to drain fluid. About 2-4 weeks of doing nothing, before you start physical therapy. 6 months is a little conservative, it depends on how your body heals and what kind of shape you are in.
2005-03-15 12:10 PM
in reply to: #124286

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Subject: RE: Overuse Injury - Compartment Syndrome

Dee,  Do you have swelling on your shin?  Did this occur as a result of a traumatic injury?  If the answer is no, then maybe you should only consider other options instead of minor surgery. Do you really want to wait 6 months to run again.  It sounds like an overuse injury to me.  A lot of these type injuries usually have one thing in common; the soleus muscle which runs from your heal to under your calf muscle.  This muscle gets very tight from running, and developes small trigger points or spasms.  This problem or spasm then pulls on the muscles that surrounds the shin area(all one muscle).  This causes shin splints and pain in the shin area(acs).  The good thing is that it can be treated by trigger point massage! There is a product call tpmassage ball. Thousands of runners have found relief from using this product. E-mail me at [email protected], if you dont want to do surgery and save your sanity!  Bryan 

2005-03-28 5:20 AM
in reply to: #124286

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Subject: RE: Overuse Injury - Compartment Syndrome

I suffered from compartment syndrome for about 20(!) years. I couldn't shake it, no matter what training I did or how slowly I resumed training after a bout of debilitating pain. Icing the muscles religiuosly after running helped immeasurably but the real key for me was to get a pair of really light training shoes. Sounds a bit simple, but a few 10's of grams in weight involved in a muscle contraction times the innumerable number of 'flexs' (ie steps) in a run make the overuse easy to understand. (Of course we do have an underlying biomechanical issue that predisposes us to this syndrome compared to others!)Since last October when I bought some light shoes I have not had any trouble with my shins, when before each day was a battle!

Can't say that this will fix your problem but I was faced with the choice of a fasciotomy too and decided to not do it and spent many years trying to find what was right for me.

Good luck!!

2005-03-28 9:07 AM
in reply to: #124286


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Subject: RE: Overuse Injury - Compartment Syndrome
Thank you for the advice. I've gone ahead and scheduled my fasciotomy for April 7th! My surgeon is confident I'll be biking in a few days after surgery and running in 3 weeks. I'm confident of his ability - he reconstructed my ACL 7 years ago.

I'll update you on how successful the surgery is! Fingers crossed I'll be competing in a sprint triathlon in June!
2005-04-02 7:54 AM
in reply to: #134725

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Subject: RE: Overuse Injury - Compartment Syndrome
Good luck with the surgery! I had compartment syndrome I guess about 6 years ago. Did they measure the pressure in the affected compartment? Pressure readings can tell you a lot about the severity of the condition. My pressures were extremely high putting me at risk for nerve damage. The severity of the condition can also determine the amount of recovery time. I had all compartments of both legs released which left me on crutches for about 6 weeks. It was about 4-6mo before I was cleared to run. It was a long haul but well worth it. That is probably not what you want to hear, but it doesn't sound like your situation is as complicated. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.


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