When to Seek Treatment for a Suspicious Groin Injury

Do you have a nagging pain in your lower abdomen, groin, thigh, or testicles that simply won’t go away and is really affecting your athletic performance?   Do your core muscles feel weak? Can you no longer accelerate like you used to? If so, this is a big problem. You may very well might be dealing with a sports hernia.

If you don’t know what a sports hernia is, you’re not alone. Even many doctors haven’t heard of a sports hernia—and there are some doctors who don’t believe they exist.  However, they most certainly exist, and they are painful.

Sports hernias develop from the repetitive turning, twisting, and fast movements that athletes make when playing. They can happen to just about anyone, no matter what level of athlete you are, or how in shape you may be.

A sports hernia can be tricky, because it can feel like many different things. This isn’t good, since getting treated for something else won’t fix a sports hernia. Many times an athlete will explain their sports hernia pain to a doctor, and they’re told that they have a pulled muscle, a strained ligament, a sore joint, cramps, lumbar spine injury, internal bruising…anything but a sports hernia. The truth is, sports hernias are very real, and they can create chronic pain that can ruin an athlete’s performance.

When is it time to seek treatment for a mysterious groin pain?

The sooner the better. If you have a persistent pain, visit a doctor—or better yet, a sports hernia specialist, just to be sure. If it’s a sports hernia and you don’t seek treatment, the injury will get worse.

But by going to a specialist, you can get a proper diagnosis and get back to doing what you love. Once a sports hernia is diagnosed, treatment can begin. This could mean anything from physical therapy to an operation, depending on the sports hernia’s level of severity. Every athlete’s body is different and heals in its own way, at its own pace.

Since 1999, Dr. William Brown has been helping professional and regular athletes heal from painful sports hernias through surgery and rehabilitation programs. If you think you may be suffering from a sports hernia, please consider making an appointment. By taking care of it before it gets out of hand, you’ll be doing yourself a huge favor. First comes the doctor visit, then the diagnosis, then treatment, then recovery. This process should begin soon so that you can get your body back to its old self.