What Are Muscle Adhesions?

Muscle damage, whether intentional or by accident, can lead to a variety of health complications but often the body will overcome and heal naturally. In some cases, when the muscle does not heal quickly, or spontaneously, there may be a risk for developing complications associated with muscle adhesions which can be quite painful. If you are suffering from pain after muscle damage was acquired, it is important to understand what muscle adhesions are and how they can be treated.

Muscle adhesions are the body's natural response to the damage to a muscle and often work as a sort of band-aid to protect the muscle from further complications. When the muscle adhesion becomes stiff, this can cause the healing process to be impeded and, ultimately, causes pain in the area where muscle damage occurred. It is important, therefore, that you discuss any muscle pain with your doctor after a muscle injury or muscle damage has occurred.

To alleviate muscle adhesions, your doctor may initially recommend pain medications to relax the muscles and physical therapy in an effort to destabilize the stiffness the muscles are experiencing. Beyond this, surgery to remove the muscle adhesions is the next best option but often should be avoided as this can cause only further adhesions to develop. Using heat application at home, exercising, using structured physical therapy, and taking muscle relaxers, will usually resolve the muscle adhesions over time.

If you find that you suffer from pain and stiffness in an area where prior muscle damage has occurred, then meeting with an orthopedic surgeon may be prudent. Often, adhesions can be manipulated through therapy alleviate pain and break down the adhesion stiffness. Only when the treatment is not successful, with medications and therapy, are patients often surgical candidates. Remember, in the beginning of muscle damage, the muscle adhesion is a positive development as it helps to protect the muscle while it heals. Beyond this, the adhesion should fade and healthy muscle should appear.

Adhesions in the muscles can be profoundly painful and are a common complication when muscle damage occurs without proper healing. While the body will produce adhesions as a normal part of healing, when these adhesions cause pain, there can be life altering health issues. If you are living with these types of muscle pain, be sure to consult with your doctor to determine if surgery is necessary.

Sources: The Healthy Alternative, by Todd Sullivan