Physiotherapists in Nantwich treat many different conditions including the issues profiled below.

Calf Muscle Tears

The calf muscles are large and powerful muscles in the lower leg, the main ones being named the gastrocnemius and soleus. These muscles push the body weight along in gait and help us run, exerting very high forces in the process. If the forces exerted by someone in a powerful activity exceed the ability of the calf muscle to cope then an muscle tear results. A tear of the calf muscle occurs very suddenly and is extremely painful, with swelling developing very quickly. The person is unable to put their heel down as it is much too painful to stretch the calf that way and they often walk on tiptoe if they can weight beat at all.

Physiotherapy treatment initially aims at reducing the pain and swelling with ice, compression and the provision of walking aids to reduce the stresses through the calf. Analgesics are also useful and once the pain has reduced then active movement of the foot in a downwards direction can start contracting the muscles again. Once the foot can be placed flat on the floor then normal gait can be encouraged with a heel raise in the shoe to prevent stretching. Muscle strengthening can then be prescribed by the physio as rehabilitation proceeds.

Forward Bending Actions Which Can Injure The Spine

In normal circumstances people bend their lumbar spines by 80-100% of the available movement when they bend over to the floor to pick things up. Adding an awkward movement such as to one side increases the stretch on the facet joint of the other side. This indicates that it is easy to get to the maximum bend limit of the lower spine by doing something easy like reaching down to the feet to put on shoes. Long periods of remaining flexed, such as sitting for a long car journey, forces the ligaments to relax, decreasing the protective muscular mechanisms and increasing the chances of suffering a disc prolapse.

If the muscles get tired by repetitive actions of lifting or bending over then their protective care of the spine is also diminished. In the anatomical examination of spines after death there has been shown to be a 20% incidence of rupture of the ligaments which connect the spines of the individual vertebrae at the back. As these ligaments are fully stretched when the spine is fully bent it is likely that bending injuries due to too much flexion of the spine are very common as people are suddenly forced into bend by an accidental movement.