Shin splints are an umbrella term describing the experience of pain along the shin bone. This is a common complaint in sports, especially in those involving running and jumping.

Shin splints are often thought of as tenderness or pain experienced around the front of your lower leg. This refers to the symptoms you are experiencing and not a specific injury, even though the term is often used without further clarification.

While many conditions fall under the diagnostic umbrella of shin splints; including both stress fractures of the tibia and compartment syndrome, we will be focusing on Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome today.

Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome (MTSS), is a condition of the lower leg that involves pain along the bottom third of the shin bone (tibia). It presents itself on the medial (the side closest to the middle of your body) aspect of the shin, and is brought on by exercise.

Usually, this pain occurs as an overuse injury as many injuries in running do. This may mean that you’ve increased your training load a little bit too much resulting in injury. Examples of this are when we increase the distance and/or frequency that we are running or training. Another cause may include decreased rest time.

Poor flexibility through the ankle and muscle imbalances, especially of the calf muscles, may lead to injuries in the athlete.

It is important that we warm-up before activity, stretch regularly and wear adequate footwear. This means that not only do we need the right footwear for the activity, but it also needs to be performing properly. This means that your old runners may not be in the same shape they were when you first bought them, and not providing the adequate shock absorption we need when training.

If you think you may be suffering from Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome, book an appointment with one of our Osteopaths online or have a chat with one of our lovely team members on (03) 5244 0063.

Shin Splints