The Plague of Athletes - Hip Flexor Strain Injuries

A hip flexor strain, can be a devastating injury to anyone unlucky enough to get one. This article will guide you through all aspects of a hip flexor strain and help you to understand the injury better.
First of all, what is a strain? Simply put, it's a tear (could be very small, or very large) in one of the hip flexor muscles, usually the psoas since it's one of the largest and most used hip flexor muscles.
Strain Causes
The first thing to look at in regards to a pulled flexor is how it was injured in the first place. Certain injuries can happen in a multitude of ways, but a hip flexor strain is not one of them. Imagine what happens in order for a strain to occur in a strong muscle group; there has to be a force strong enough not only to damage the muscle(s), but to cause a physical tear in the muscle, this is an enormous force required! There are rare cases where someone has a tight muscle to an extreme degree and pulls it doing something routine, but the majority of muscle strains are caused in explosive movements like sprinting or changing directions really fast, almost always while playing a sport.
Strain Types
There are officially 3 types of hip flexor strains, first, second, and third degree. Try to think of them not as absolute terms, but as relative terms on a spectrum, with first degree being at the very bottom, third degree at the top, and second degree in the middle of the spectrum in regards to damage done to the muscle.
First Degree
A first degree pull is a minor tear in a muscle, but you can usually still perform all movements like normal, except you will feel some pain or discomfort. Obviously this is the ideal level if you do pull your hip flexor as the recovery time is very short, often you may be able to play through the injury with little risk of further injury.
Second Degree
A second degree strain is a point in which significantly more damage has been done to the hip flexor than in a first degree strain. This type of strain involves a significant partial tear to a muscle and can cause considerable pain and function loss. Typically along with the pain there is minor bruising and swelling, which will be addressed later on in treatment.
Third Degree
This is the absolute worst strain you can suffer, a full muscular tear. If you have a third degree strain I can only hope that the first thing you did was go see a doctor, if you have not yet please do so NOW. Along with a third degree pull is a considerable amount of pain, and extremely limited functionality, usually you will not be able to walk at all. There will not only be pain, but also major bruising and swelling, and possibly even spasms.
How to Treat
Since muscle strains have long since plagued athletes, a lot of research and testing has been done on how to best treat them. Using the PRICE System along with a rehabilitation program will help you treat a hip flexor strain effectively.