- Hamstring injuries have been a major problem for Green Bay Packers players this season. The injury has been listed more than 30 times on the injury report so far.
- Video shows the three muscles that make up the hamstring. Local doctor explains the main cause for injury and the recovery process.
- WR Christian Watson, CB Eric Stokes out Sunday against the Vikings due to the injury. Watson has missed seven games this season.
(The following is a transcription of the full broadcast story)
Hamstring injuries may not be as bad as ACL or achilles injuries but can still be a major problem for athletes and non-athletes.
It has been listed more than 30 times this year in the Green Bay Packers injury report and two players, Christian Watson and Eric Stokes, were sidelined against the Vikings because of it.
Just like any injury, Dr. Michael Harper, interventional sports medicine physician at Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Specialists in Green Bay, said hamstring injuries can be very frustrating has had many patients suffer from them.
He says the process can be frustrating for those patients and providers.
"A lot of times it happens when they are decelerating and so if you watch film of someone grabbing their hamstring, a lot of times it happens when they are slowing down versus when they are trying to speed up," Dr. Harper said.
And starting as early as Week One, three packers players suffered hamstring injuries of some degree.
After the Week One win against the Chicago Bears, running back Aaron Jones was added to that list.
Wide Receiver Christian Watson has now missed seven games due to hamstring injury.
"(For) the majority of hamstring injuries that are in that grade one or the mild category, it's the matter of weeks that they're getting back but there are some that just continue to persist and it can take months," Dr. Harper said. "As we have seen with some of the prominent sports stars that we have, it takes a long time to fully recover and get back."
Dr. Harper says most of the time it's treatable without needing surgery.
"We do our best at trying to identify what's the best course of action and if we can treat something non-operatively," Dr. Harper said. "That's what happens with the majority of our patients."
Depending on the severity of the injury, Dr. Harper says waiting to see a doctor can increase your chances of needing surgery.
He urges athletes, and fans who want to see them, to be more patient during the healing process.
"We don't want to set you up for failure of going back in and then re-injuring it after being in for only a few plays," Dr. Harper said. "Then (they) now need to sit out and spend a few more weeks out."
With the debate between turf and grass fields on injuries, Dr. Harper says there is no statistically significant evidence to prove which type of field creates more of a hamstring, or any other type of injury, risk.
