Nerve Entrapment After Hamstring Injury

Abstract

Hamstring muscle injuries are a frequent cause of athletic sequelae, and the frequency of reinjuries is high. Frequently, disability in sport is the consequence and performance is limited. A case report of a soccer player who was unable to play his sport after a minor hamstring muscle injury is presented. We introduce a previously undescribed lesion featured by a scar compromising a motor branch of the sciatic nerve to the long head of the biceps femoris muscle. Resection of the involved branch of the nerve resulted in complete pain relief and full sport capacity. This case report demonstrates that in very rare cases, a scar tissue-induced intramuscular entrapment of a branch of the sciatic nerve must be considered as a reason for athletic incapacity after minor hamstring injury. Both the degree of a muscular injury and its specific location within the injured muscle may therefore influence the functional outcome.

Sciatic Nerve Injury After Proximal Hamstring Avulsion and Repair

“…Case reports exist of both sciatic nerve injury secondary to hamstring avulsion and during operative repair, but the true incidence of this complication is unknown. 4,8 –10,14,15 The goal of the current study was to characterize the sciatic nerve injuries from proximal hamstring avulsion and the neurologic outcomes, both related to the sciatic nerve and posterior cutaneous nerve of the thigh, after surgical repair of proximal hamstring avulsions.…”

“…There are case reports of distal sciatic nerve symptoms that develop both acutely and chronically after hamstring avulsion. 4,8,10,14,15 It is not clear, however, how frequently injury to the sciatic nerve associated with proximal hamstring avulsion occurs. Furthermore, there is some risk of neurologic injury during surgical repair of proximal hamstring avulsions, particularly to the sciatic nerve and the posterior cutaneous nerve of the thigh.…”