What is Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome?
Medial tibial stress syndrome is inflammation and pain on the inside of your shin bone (tibia). It can be one of the causes for shin splint which is pain over the front of the lower leg (tibia bone).
Medial tibial stress syndrome and shin splints are often confused. Shin splints is a generalised word used to refer pain to the shin whereas medial tibial stress syndrome is the actual diagnosis that may cause shin splints. However, due to the common symptoms, today, many people refer shin splint as medial tibial stress syndrome.
Symptoms of Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome
The main symptoms of medial tibial stress syndrome are:
- Pain on the inside of the shin bone
- Swelling and tender over the shin bone area
- The pain is worse with exercise
Causes of Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome
Medial tibial stress syndrome is a repetitive stress injury. Running is a common cause of medial tibial stress syndrome as the pressure of your weight was put on each foot while running and this action causes stress to the muscles on your shin.
Medial tibial stress syndrome can also occur if you have a high arched foot (underpronation).
Some common causes of medial tibial stress syndrome include:
- Wrong running footwear
- too much training on hard surfaces
- poor training habits
- weak calf muscles
- weak pelvis
Treatment for Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome
If the pain to your shin bone did not improve with time, you should see our sports and orthopaedic specialist for treatment.
Treatment options include:
- Shockwave Therapy – to speed up the body’s self healing process
- Physiotherapy – to strengthen the calf muscles
How to Prevent Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome
- Do enough warm ups
- Do not ignore the pain for too long to avoid further damage to your muscles and bone
Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome Specialist
