Aquatic Therapy for Hamstring Injuries

Aquatic Therapy for Hamstring Injuries

Aquatic therapy for hamstring injuries is beneficial in accelerating the recovery process, helping patients and athletes resume former activities and strengthening their muscles to reduce future injuries.

What Is a Grade 2 Hamstring Tear?

For athletes, the diagnosis of a grade 2 hamstring tear means two things:

1. It’s time to start resting and then rehabilitating the torn muscle.

2. The sooner the hamstring heals, the faster the individual can get back in the action.

Hamstring Tear Recovery Protocol

Hamstring tears are common among athletes. Grade 2 indicates a partial muscle tear that often takes weeks or months to heal, depending on the severity and physical therapy regime.

Grade 2 hamstring tear rehab protocol usually includes the RICE method — rest, ice, compress and elevate. Clinicians typically design rehabilitation programs with gentle stretches and exercises to aid recovery for athletes and patients.

How Fast Is Grade 2 Hamstring Tear Recovery Time With Hydrotherapy?

Hydrotherapy significantly accelerates recovery, with grade 2 tears taking weeks to rehabilitate rather than many months of land-based therapy. Injured hamstrings may be painful to step on, making a recovery on land uncomfortable and causing many clinicians to wait before pushing rehabilitation.

The Benefits of Hydrotherapy for Hamstring Tears

Aquatic therapy has many benefits in aiding hamstring tear recovery:

• Earlier rehabilitation: Aquatic therapy can commence sooner than land-based therapy. It is gentler on the hamstrings while helping to strengthen them faster, leading to a quicker recovery.
• Greater user satisfaction: Water therapy is mild on the body compared to traditional rehabilitation, and improvements are evident to patients and athletes. These factors lead to higher compliance and fewer cancellations.
• Reduced pain during treatment: The warmth and buoyancy of water reduce pain during physical therapy, aiding recovery and making progress easier for users.
• Increased confidence: Patients and athletes may hesitate to walk or use their injured hamstrings on land due to pain. In the water, they can build confidence that translates to faster physiological and psychological recovery from the injury.

A Case Study of Grade 2 Hamstring Injury Soothed by HydroWorx Pool Workouts 

In general, grade 2 hamstring tears are of moderate severity. Grade 1 is less severe and grade 3 is the most severe. Those affected may experience a multitude of symptoms including gait issues, pain and swelling. And because the pressure of walking can create intense discomfort, many find physical therapy to be a challenging process.

That’s one of the reasons that Jason Coleman, a trainer at the Akron Athletics Sports Medicine facility, University of Akron, OH, uses the HydroWorx physical therapy pool to minimize his patients’ physical aches during rehab.

In the video below, Coleman explains how the HydroWorx pool is getting a college track and field high jumper back to tiptop condition.

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Learn More About Aquatic Therapy and Rehabilitation

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