Related to chronic pain issue. I was diagnosed (might not be correct) with trapezius muscle strain but I was told it might take years and years to be healed! I don’t know does it mean I have micro tear? If someone has micro tear in muscles, could he have on/off pain? I have pain mostly sitting at desk to work but other positions or times less. I can swim but some dys after swim ood some days bad. Overall, what is tear and what is strain?
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they are fibers. you stretch them too far they tear a bit and get loose. think of it like a rubber band that is worn out or dry.. maybe even the neck on a t-shirt. you stretch it too far and the integrity pops a bit. while your muscles can repair themselves and your shirt cannot.. it’s not quite a tear but small fibers are often torn during exercise (DOMS) a strain vs. a sprain is a grading of said tearing.
in your specific instance those trap tears/strains impact you constantly because they are involved in you turning your head, holding your posture and keeping your head up. you’re using them a lot. I woke up once, stretched, tore/strained a trap portion and couldn’t turn my head left for three days because of the pain. made showering hard.
i think you’re looking at a nerve issue if you have mobility and lack of issues with the activities you’re performing. the use of the muscle should be a trigger in the discomfort.
who diagnosed you? a MD or a PT?
https://exrx.net/Injury
a pretty decent lay persons’ guide to all things exercise
A strain is a mild version of a tear. Tears are classified as Grade 1/2/3.
Grade one is generally mild discomfort, no bruising, no latent pain. This is usually what we refer to as a strain.
Grade 2 may or may not have bruising, will have significant discomfort and limited range of motion. This is often referred to as a “pulled muscle.”
Grade 3 is a complete rupture. Usually will have immediate bruising. Usually requires surgical repair.
Muscle strains do not take years to heal. Grade 1s usually take 1-4 weeks. Grade 2 takes 4-8, grade 3 usually takes 6+months.
Non-operative musculoskeletal MD here. A strain is an injury to either muscle or tendon, in which some or all fibers are torn. It is not a mild version of a tear. It is the tear. There is no exact distinction between grades 1 and 2, except to say that in a grade 2, enough fibers are torn that the muscle-tendon unit is elongated. Grade 3 is a complete tear.
To diagnose a strain, there has to have been an incident, an acute event. Pain that comes out of nowhere is not a strain. And strains do not take years and years to heal. You should find a physician who diagnoses musculoskeletal disorders with ultrasound, as that will give you the highest resolution images. Where are no located?
A trapezius strain means your muscle is overstretched or injured, but not necessarily torn. A micro-tear is a tiny muscle fiber rupture, which can cause on/off pain, especially with certain activities like sitting at a desk or swimming. A strain typically heals over time, but depending on severity, it can take a long time. A tear, on the other hand, involves more significant damage to the muscle fibers. Pain can vary with movement or rest.