Stress Fractures

When your foot muscles become fatigued and overused, an injury called a stress fracture may result. The muscles become so strained that they can no longer absorb repeated shock and impact. Eventually this stress is transferred from the muscle to the bone, resulting in a small crack, or stress fracture.

The common causes of a stress fracture are:

• sudden increase in the amount and/or intensity of an activity
• using equipment improperly
• high impact sports such as running, track, gymnastics and basketball
• bone mass decreases caused by eating disorders, amenorrhea, and osteoporosis (all of which are suffered more by women than men)

When you feel the pain of what may be a stress fracture, see a health physician immediately for evaluation. Because if you do not stop the impact and strain on the bone, an even more serious stress fracture will develop.

Treatments for stress fracture include:

• REST! This is the most important aspect of healing a stress fracture. You need to take a break from the activity that caused the stress fracture. This can be hard, especially since most of these injuries are caused by sports, and most athletes are unwilling to take a break in their activities. But for 6 to 8 weeks, in order for a stress fracture to completely heal, you need to engage in a different activity that doesn't pressure or give pain to your foot.

The best ways to prevent a stress fracture from happening are to:

• Slowly increase any new sports or physical activity into your daily routine (gradually build up running mileage, hours biking, etc)
• Keep up a healthy diet. Especially for women, calcium rich foods are very important for maintaining healthy bones.
• Make sure the equipment you are using is safe and in the proper condition. Don't run in old, worn out shoes.
• Stop the activity for a few days immediately if any pain or swelling occurs.
• Make an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon if the pain continues
• Consult a physcician if treatment doesn't start to work in 1 or 2 weeks. The injury may be more serious than a stress fracture.