Adhesion’s are often mistaken for chronic hamstring pain in runners
Adhesion is one of the most common and under diagnosed conditions in the human body. This glue-like substance surrounds and binds muscle, tendon, ligament, nerve and fascia limiting normal tissue function. The scar tissue like substance is the body’s normal response to inflammation. Adhesion’s are caused by two major mechanisms – Acute traumatic injury (car accident, sprained ankle, fall, etc) or a Repetitive Motion Injury which can result from a specific movement (i.e. typing, throwing, lifting) or specific position (i.e. sitting, texting, etc.)
Your body lays down adhesion’s as a protective mechanism to stabilize injured or strained tissue and is no different than casting a broken bone. However, this “protective response” in the presence of bad posture, sedentary lifestyle, and poor diet results in weaker and less flexible tissue. This leads to a further decrease in blood flow, oxygen and eventually the production of more adhesion’s. What was once thought of as “tight” calf or “knot” in your shoulder is really a sign of adhesion’s and is creating serious dysfunction to joints, ligaments and discs leading to arthritis, degeneration and tears.
What initially started off as a little “tightness” and “stiffness” has now turned into pain and is jeopardizing your workouts, hobbies, and responsibilities at home and work. You try massage, stretching and rolling around on a foam roller to no avail. The symptoms are still there and they are getting worse, not better. A few months have gone by and you are starting to wonder if you will ever be able to get back to your hobbies pain free or is this just the beginning of the end. Are you falling victim to the cliche ” i’m just getting old” and thinking maybe it’s your time to head out to the pasture to live out your finally years.
Nonsense. Refer to the beginning of this article where i mentioned adhesion is the most common and under diagnosed conditions. . . Adhesion does not show up on imaging – x-ray, ct scan or MRI, and there is no blood markers to test for an adhesion. The physiological tissue changes that occur in the presence of an adhesion can only be observed by changes in movement and local palpation of the specific tissues involved. It takes a certified provider with years of clinical practice to develop the skills necessary to find and fix an adhesion quickly and effectively.
If you are suffering with muscle, joint, tendon or ligament pain. If you have unresolved numbness tingling, burning, or discogenic pain then you most likely have an adhesion that is contributing to your symptoms. I encourage you to find a practitioner in your area that is certified in Active Release Technique. ART™ certified provider will provide a functional exam that can identify and correct the primary adhesion that is causing pain and dysfunction. If you know of anyone that may be suffering from unresolved muscle, joint, ligament or nerve pain then please inform them about adhesion and Active Release Technique. If you have questions or need help finding a certified provider in your area please contact our clinic so we can help.
Stay Healthy Delafield,
– Dr. Paul Krzesinski DC, ART™
