Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome in Runners
As many as two third of runners get an overuse injury in any year, which is a lot. If the athlete is competitive, this injury will interfere with their training schedule and preparation for competition. If they are a recreational runner, the injury can affect their motivation to continue with exercising. A number of factors increase the risk for getting on injury. One of the most common is doing too much running too soon and not building up distances slowly. A sudden change in the running routine can also be a factor. Poor biomechanics, especially coming from the foot can be a problem and so can the incorrect running shoes. Muscles that are tight or muscle groups that are imbalance can also be a problem.
One of the more common injuries is medial tibial stress syndrome. This used to be called shin splints in the past. Medial tibial stress syndrome is a reaction of the bone to stressed place on it by the leg muscles. The pain is normally felt on the inside of the tibia or shin bone. The most common cause of this are errors in the training routine, abnormal function or biomechanics of the foot or tight calf muscles.
The treatment of medial tibial stress syndrome usually starts with some sort of modification to the training routine, especially the partial substitution of the running with a non-weight bearing activity like cycling or swimming. Errors in the training routine need to be sorted out. Foot orthotics or supports are used to correct the foot biomechanics and stretching will be needed for the calf muscles.
Medical advice for anyone with medial tibial stress syndrome should be sought.