ggggg
ggggg
I'm weightlifter and have the same symptoms many have described here, I saw my GP and he found nothing. I live in Denver and am looking for a Dr who can correctly diagnosis me and do whatever is necessary so I can start working out again.
Anyone here live in the Denver area and know of a physician who specializes in treating sports hernia's?
Thanks
Hey shsuffererinsf,How was your appointment with Dr Brown?
shsuffererinsf wrote:
There's a new website by a west coast specialist that does a good job of summarizing this injury, and his preferred treatment. Seems similar to meyers in approach. i was scheduled to go see meyers in PA, but due to the fact that brown is only 30 minutes from my house i will be seeing him first for an exam.
he was recommended to me by the oakland raiders team doc. he used to doc for the sharks and has referred many people to brown.
http://www.sportshernia.com
Mr Man - Did you ever get a sound treatment for your symptons. I have the exact same set as you indicate in your post. I'm going on 9 months now with no relief. It has started to affect my back now, probably because I am unable to strengthen my abdominals or perform my regular workouts.
This thread is back up and running. Sorry for having it down.
testing one more time
hey jc
you should get down to nyc to see dr bryan kelly at the hospital for special surgery...he can check our your hips as well. it is often that people have both sports hernias and the faulty hip setup- i know- i have been through it all.
2.5 years out from sh surgeries, still with issues, but are in the hips now.
i know others who had the sh surgeries, and didn't totally recover- when the hips were done, they felt better.
Johhny! How are you feeling today? It would be very interesting to compare your symptoms before the operation and now 2.5 years later. Are you still hypersensitive in your groin?
Warren
pain did get a bunch better as i got stronger but unfortunately my hips started to get worse.
today my left hip hurts a lot. similar symptoms to the sports hernia, only deep hip mixed with intermittent, groin, si joint, low back, and gluteal pains that all move around.
it sucks big time.
i have to get my hips scoped. i have bilateral hip fai that most likely caused the sports hernia to take place. without that being solved, i couldn't recover from the injury syndrome.
i cannot get the surgery till may so for now i am pretty much hurting again.
You are saying that your feet should be pointed out in opposite directions as you lower yourself down on one side?
HHH wrote:
Sorry, the leg that has the bent knee should also have the foot in the OPPOSITE direction from the other foot. So lets pretend you are facing north. One foot also faces north and the faces East (I hope that makes sense).
Hey - so it looks like this thread is back up and running. I tried posting my experience as I returned from Munich but the thread was not open and no new posts for like a couple months. Sent Email to Letsrun, who emailed me that it was not meant to be shut down and that they would fix it. I tried reposting Wednsday the 10th and still no go. Emailed letsrun again and they say it's up. I just logged on and I see a post that is apparently new from johnny - a longtime poster on this thread and one who has been very helpful to a lot of people coming here for help.Sorry to see that you are still having problems johnny.In a few days I will post my LONG journey to Munich - starting here as I read from the start of this thread about a year ago.
Cheers,
Shriv
I've been experiencing a fair bit of groin pain. It happened playing football about a year or so ago, where I was hit in the back while looking to bring a high ball down with my right foot. It hurt, but not enough to stop me playing (I just hobbled round for the rest of the game) - obviously in hindsight I would have stopped.
I let it rest for a couple of weeks until the noticeable pain went away (again - in hindsight this wasn't long enough) and then carried on playing. After a while I wouldn't necessarily feel pain while I was playing but afterward and especially the morning after i'd be in a fair bit of pain. The pain however would go subside enough for me to play once a week with the pain recurring each other. Obviously in hindsight I shouldn't have been playing.
During this period - I trained a fair bit for a half-marathon, and while the pain hindered me while playing Football (twisting and turning and such) it didn't prevent me from running.
About 3-4 months ago I stopped playing Football under the advice from my GP - who just suggested I rested it for a few weeks (which I did). After which however I carried on playing Badminton - a sport which didn't leave me feeling pain the morning after like football did so I thought this would be ok (it probably wasn't).
During this time I met a physio, who suggested I get a groin support, which I did. I attempted playing Football with it again (first time in about 3-4months) and felt fine during the game but the morning after (and since) i've been in alot of pain. She's since suggested the idea that it could be a Sports Hernia. Are the details i've described consistent with those of a Sports Hernia and if so what should I do about it?
I'm a touch sceptical about this being what it is but alot of the symptoms are consistent with a Sports Hernia.
Hey Robert,
From your post I can't tell how the pain is manifesting for
you. You say WHEN it hurts but not how it feels. My experience in dealing with my s.h. and in reading the entire thread here starting from a year ago [something I suggest you at least start on] is that the pain is both different/the same for each person. My pain started as a radiating gut pain in my lower right abdomen. Then over time it morphed into more specific pain in my abdomen,my groin and my right ball.
Without this thread I never would have figured out what it was and who to go to to fix it.
The 1st day I read the very first page on this thread I was nodding my head - very excited, realizing that this was what I had. Try reading into this and check out what others have felt - I think you will answer your own question.
Good luck.
Shriv
Has anyone from UK had a successfully repair???
Anyone had experience with Roger Hackney in Leeds or David Lloyd in Leicester?
Looking for UK sports hernia sufferer.
The pain started about 3 years ago – 2 or 3 months after I had had an umbilical hernia operation where the surgeon put in a piece of mesh. 1-2-3, no problem. But later I started to have a radiating pain from my abdomen that I at first thought was pancreatitis or something along those lines. It wasn’t constant, but at times it was bad enough for my wife to ask me if I wanted to go to the emergency room. I subsequently had 2 CAT scans and a sonogram. Nothing. I called the surgeon – everything was by the book. Nothing.
And then it went away.
Over the next 3 years it came and went. But by the 3rd year [2008] it decided to stay on a constant basis. And the pain changed over time. By 2008 it was pain in my lower right abdomen [felt like I had a “crease” in my gut], pain at my pubic bone and my right testicle would hurt. Hard to walk at times. There were other pains – but these were the main ones.
By year 2 plus - I had seen 8 doctors[including the head of thoracic surgery at a prestigious teaching hospital], had all these tests….and nobody had anything for me. I came back from a visit to the surgeon who had done the umbilical hernia operation with his words –“ there’s nothing showing in the tests you’ve had . I suggest pain management”. Didn’t examine me…his only suggestion was basically, you’ve got pain – deal with it [for the rest of your life].Wish I'd told him to f*** off, but I was raised to be polite. When I got home, bummed out at hearing this last failed “diagnosis”, a friend called who knew where I had been and wanted to know the results. She was pissed off at the doctor when I told her what he did/did not do. She said-“remember that GI doc you saw who asked if you had ever heard of a sports hernia?” Did you ever check that out? No. So I Googled it and found the LetsRun thread. Within 2 minutes [with my friend on the phone] I’m saying – hey, this is me - same pain, no diagnosis despite lots of tests, doctors who are clueless. I couldn’t believe that here were people going through what I was/had been going through. So over the next 6 months I worked my way through the entire thread. I finally knew what I had and I knew who I wanted to fix it.
I live in the Philadelphia suburbs….so if you’ve read this thread you know where I’m going – right? Nope. After a nice conversation with Meyers’ secretary I found that he was not in my insurance network, that it would cost $500 for his exam and then $2500 –3K for a non-network MRI. The posts on LetsRun were saying the operation was like 12-15K. So that’s 3 –3.5K to confirm MY diagnosis and then 15K to get it fixed….18K out of pocket!
Plus the more I read into the thread, the name of Muschaweck started coming up…and the reviews were very favorable. I checked out her website [very impressive] and emailed her in Munich. She personally replied to my “cold call” email and from there I was fortunate enough to get an appointment with her when she was here in the States. Unlike all the other docs I saw she was positive, professional and courteous. And she proved to me that what she said was a “sportsmans’ groin” was what I had. She did a digital exam – it hurt on the right side. When I said to her – “you know I bet that would hurt if you did the same exam on my left side”, she just smiled, said “you think so?”, and then showed me that the left side did not hurt. Then she did a sonogram where she showed me the injured right side.She told me “ I can fix this and you can get on with a normal life”. I could have kissed her. I was impressed by everything she did, said and projected. This is my doctor. And she is cheaper than Meyers [it ended up costing me about7K -free flight with frequent flier miles].
When I returned home I emailed numerous times in a dialogue with Cristina her secretary. She was very helpful. We settled on a date [Dec.4,5,6th] and I booked my flight.
So – here’s what the Germany part was like:
* UM’s business office in Munich is where you first report. It’s in a high-rise in a large complex of stores and other medical offices. An associate doc draws blood , asks questions and checks your groin out. Then another doctor [she was a very nice,beautiful Chinese woman –that was a nice plus] asks you more questions, examines your abdominal wall and does a sonogram. VERY thorough these people! She spoke with awe of Dr.UM’s surgical techniques….not scripted. Nice to hear before you sign off on possibly losing your balls if the surgery doesn’t go well!!! I’m not kidding here. If the spermatic cord is cut during the operation – you’re balls will shrivel and die! She also said that that had never happened in all 15,000 of UM’s surgeries. I like those odds. Still – it gave me pause before I signed over that possibility.
* The Residence/operating theatre is in Starnburg – about an hours train ride from her office. The train/subway system was great. And so were the German people. I was constantly asking for advice/help and they were warm and friendly. Many spoke English.
The town of Starnburg looks charming as I motor through it. The Residence looks like a modern hotel as you enter and the rooms are very nice, very clean. There is one tv station in English – CNN International.
The food is AWFUL. Inedible for 1 of my 3 nights. I’m glad that I’ve brought some edibles with me or I’d be starving. They forget me for 1 of my lunches and cannot get it together to bring me one,so I limp across the road for the saltiest and perhaps the worst pizza I’ve ever tasted . Adding salt to the wounds is that I had paid for the lunch that I did not get…it’s part of the package.
Breakfasts are underwhelming. This is worse than airlines food! This is the only part of the stay that REALLY needs improving.
*Dr.UM examines you [boy are they thorough!!] and goes over the surgery.
The surgery was the next day. They wheel you through an underground hallway to the O.R. Being wheeled into the waiting room immediately adjacent to the O.R. you can see UM’s current patient being operated on as the doors open and close. A little daunting that. But out came the anesthesiologist whom I had met briefly before. She pulls off her mask, gives me a big smile and hello. As I’m wheeled in and as they’re prepping me she pats me on the shoulders and says everything will be just fine, I’ll be right here watching the whole time. NICE TOUCH that! Well done!
Dr.UM is the professional non pareil. She does 4-7 of these a day at 1-1 ½ hours each. An amazing woman. A great doctor.
AFTER:
The day after was painful – DUH! Hard to walk, ice on gut. I’m 57 and not in great shape due to not being able to work out for the last year cause of this damn s.h. So I’m definitely not getting on a train for 1 ½ hours the next day and then flying for 10 hours back to the states [plus a 2 ½ hour layover in Atlanta]. If you’re in your 20’s and in great shape maybe you can do what UM says – get up and walk out the next day. Not me. I scheduled another day and boy I’m glad I did. The trip back was still grueling and by the time I hit Atlanta I can barely walk.
I was surprised/dismayed to see the top of my penis and my scrotum turning an ugly purple the 2nd day. YIKES! Gives you pause to think of the “losing your balls” thing if your spermatic cord is cut. I HATE when that happens.But it's just the blood pooling at the lowest point - 7 days later it's much improved.I didn't even bother asking UM about it.
Today as I write this it’s 1 week since the surgery. I’m still having a fair amount of pain and trouble walking. But I am improving. Lots of ice and ibuprofen. And thankfully – my balls have not shrunken and fallen off. Yahoo!
I’ll report back in a while with progress….and I’ll keep it short next time. I wanted to let anyone considering their options to have a more complete write-up than any I’ve seen on these pages.
Here’s hoping for health for all…………
Really hope it works out for you.
I am yet to read a 100% succsess story about a sports hernia repair. I worry that if I have the surgery that I will not be any better.
Im self employed and been told I will need 4 weeks off work. I don't mind that if the operation works out ok.
Anyone had this surgery in the UK. England.
Evan Padget on this thread had had a very good outcome from going to Munich.
uk sufferer
I believe that if you go back and read through the previous posts you won't have such a pessimistic opinion. To my recollection there are a number of folks who have had successful outcomes. I actually believe that they are in the majority - remember, people who get well tend to get on with their lives.....they stop visiting and posting - which is one of the reasons I wanted to post my experience and continue to leave follow-ups. There are bunches of people who have posted on and then gone about their lives not to be heard of again.Do you imagine that they ALL had bad outcomes? Muschawecks' walls have the pictures of maybe 30 professional athletes [mostly soccer/football to you Brits]in frames with Thanks from them. Would you think they would thank her for bad outcomes. I don't think so.
I am NOT an optimistic person in general. But I think if you are lucky and get the right surgeon [yes luck plays a part for sure, as does youth,genetics,general health,etc.]you stand a good chance of having a normal life. Maybe you won't continue athletics at your previous level [then again lots do] but maybe you can lead a normal life without pain ruling it.Let's hope so!!!
Based on my reading of all these pages and lots of research - I went to Muschaweck. Is it a success? Don't know yet, but I will post back with my results good or bad.
Hey,
I believe I have some sort of SH as well. I remember that the pain started the day after I had done an impromptu rugby goal-kicking practice and for some reason kicked an obscene amount of goals without stretching much. Dumb. Anyway, the pain is exactly where everyone says it is: a couple inches above the genitals, perhaps localized slightly more on the right side, which is the leg I was kicking with. I have been in some pain for about 8 months. I believe the root cause to be overtraining of the strength in my legs without specifically training my abdomen or flexibility. However, my condition seems slightly different to some of you others'.
1. I feel that at least some of my pain goes away after I warm up. Most of the pain is day-to-day sudden movements, eg: getting out of a low-slung car, getting up from laying on the floor, closing my knees together suddenly. I can still engage in athletics, lift heavy weights, run and tackle. Perhaps adrenaline has something to do with the pain vanishing, but it occurs in practice too, when there isn't really any adrenaline. Does anyone else's pain sooth or disappear after a long warmup?
2. It does not really hurt much when coughing or sneezing. Perhaps sometimes, but that's not a memorable cause of the pain.
3. It hurts less when I go through the motions that DO make it hurt, but also focus on tightening and contracting my transverse abdominus (the muscle you contract when you try to fit into a tight-waisted pair of jeans, and NOT your "six-pack".)
So my questions are: Does this sound like a MILD sports hernia or a full-fledged one? If it is MILD, do I have a better chance of alleviating the symptoms with rest? Has anyone had success resting while doing exercises to specifically strengthen the lower abdomen/ Tr.A.?
Thanks to you all.
Also, if the pain is not so great that I can still perform abdominal exercises after a warm-up, would trying to strengthen and hypertrophy those muscles by working them out be a viable option toward getting rid of the pain?