How to treat an adductor strain

The adductor muscle in the thigh can suffer strain or injury, making movement difficult and forcing you to stay in bed. We list easy pain management tips to deal with it.

Every person has undergone some amount of muscular pain at some point in time. The pain can be quite acute when the major muscles in the body are affected. The adductor muscle, which is the biggest muscle in the thigh, can become painful and sore due to localised tearing, or internal bruising owing to exercise, or sudden shift in activity, or repeated exertion.

What is the cause of the muscle pain?

You first need to check what has caused the adductor muscle to hurt or swell. Is wrong form during exercise the culprit? Did you pull it when you went sprinting? Is it just a strain or pull, or has the muscle torn? Wrong or excessive exercise, or any activity that strains the adductor muscle, must be stopped at once.

Your doctor can run an X-ray or scan to determine the cause of the muscle pain. Hereafter, you can follow the doctor’s advice on pain management for the prescribed amount of time.

And here’s how you can care for it at home:

* Protect the muscle and rest it.

The first thing to do is to protect the adductor muscle from further strain. Once you have identified the cause of the muscle pain, you can ensure that you do not repeat that same activity. Protect the muscle fibres and surrounding tendons by padding the area with cotton, and then taping the pad in place with medical tape or a bandage. Do not move around or walk during this time – sit in a comfortable seat and let the muscle heal.

* Ice it thrice a day.

Typical signs of muscle pain include inflammation and swelling. The swelling is caused by a protective fluid build-up at the site of the internal injury. However, the fluid also slows down the recovery process and accumulates toxins. Ice the swollen adductor muscle thrice a day, for up to 10 minutes at a time. If the swelling is excessive, apply a hot compress first and follow it up with the ice pack. The cold pack numbs the muscle and you experience less pain than before. However, be sure not to exert the muscle at all during this time.

* Implement a pain relief system.

You will also need a daily pain relief system to deal with the adductor distress: it comprises a pain relief cream or spray, an ice pack, pain relieving fluids (like green tea or ginger tea) and lots of rest. Use a good pain relief spray: the advantage of the spray is that you don’t need to rub it into the skin, which helps if the muscle is swollen. However, you can use a cream if the adductor muscle has cramped or ‘hardened’. Ice the muscle first, and use gentle fingers to knead the cream into the skin. Meanwhile, have ginger tea laced with honey thrice a day to reduce the inflammation.