Abstract
Tennis Leg: A Unique “Strain”, Management Approach and Review of the Literature
Highlights
Described in 1883 by Powell[1], tennis leg known as calf strain refers to an acute traumatic injury of the medial head of the gastrocnemius muscle
Following a study in which Arner and Lindholm[2], surgically explored patients with clinical tennis leg it was proposed that all such patients suffered from an isolated injury to the medial head of gastrocnemius usually at the myotendinous junction
Delgado et al, performed a cadaveric study assessing the diagnostic findings of ultrasound and MRI, concluding the majority of patients thought to have tennis leg suffered from a partial rupture of the medial head of gastrocnemius within 2cm from its myotendinous junction (67%), with a significant proportion demonstrating fluid between the medial head and soleus but no actual rupture (21%)[3]
Summary
Described in 1883 by Powell[1], tennis leg known as calf strain refers to an acute traumatic injury of the medial head of the gastrocnemius muscle. Following a study in which Arner and Lindholm[2], surgically explored patients with clinical tennis leg it was proposed that all such patients suffered from an isolated injury to the medial head of gastrocnemius usually at the myotendinous junction. Delgado et al, performed a cadaveric study assessing the diagnostic findings of ultrasound and MRI, concluding the majority of patients thought to have tennis leg suffered from a partial rupture of the medial head of gastrocnemius within 2cm from its myotendinous junction (67%), with a significant proportion demonstrating fluid between the medial head and soleus but no actual rupture (21%)[3]. It would seem that those with clinical findings suggestive of tennis leg are likely to be suffering from a variation of multiple potential complex injury patterns, commonly affecting the gastrocnemius medial head, with a smaller proportion suffering from injuries to the plantaris muscle[3]
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