Shin Splints

How Does It Feel?

Tightness in the front of the lower leg
Stiffness in the front of the lower leg
Sharp pain in the front of the shin bone
Dull pain in the front of the shin bone
Aching around the shin bone
Throbbing around the shin bone

Signs & Symptoms

Feel pain in the middle or bottom third of the inside of the shin

The pain may be sharp when you touch the tender area, or occur as an ache during or after exercise.

Pain is initially provoked with activity and lessens with rest

When shin splints are developing, the pain may be present during the beginning of exercise and less noticeable as exercise progresses.

Diagnosis

What We Do

We conduct a thorough examination including the back, hips, knee, and ankle/foot. We determine the root cause of your symptoms to ensure that physical therapy treatment is the best option for you.

How We Do It

We examine posture, range of motion, strength, reflexes, sensation, soft tissue mobility, joint mobility, nerve mobility, and functional movements to create a custom treatment plan. We also take into account any imaging that you have had like X-Rays, MRI, CT scans, etc.

We also analyze movement patterns to ensure that you are using proper technique to avoid reinjury in the future. If you are a runner, we can use video analysis to determine technique faults and then coach you on how to correct them.

Treatment Plan

We may use a combination of the following
techniques to help you get your life back:

Joint manipulation/mobilization to decrease pain and improve ankle motion and movement of the joints in the foot
Soft tissue mobilization to reduce muscle guarding and increase mobility especially in the calf
Dry Needling to reduce muscular pain and increase the health of muscle tissue especially in the calf and muscles along the front and side of your lower leg
Neuromuscular retraining to teach your body how to move in a better way and improve your balance and stability
Mobility training to increase flexibility and range of motion in your ankle and foot
Strength training increase your calf, lower leg and foot strength
Endurance training to improve your capacity to do what you love without pain especially if you’re a runner or athlete