A strain is a stretch or tear of a muscle or tendon. People commonly call such an injury a "pulled" muscle.
Your hamstring muscle group is in the back of your thigh and allows you to bend your knee. It is made up of three large muscles: the biceps, semimembranosus, and semitendinosus.
A hamstring muscle strain usually occurs when these muscles are contracted forcefully during activities such as running or jumping.
There is often a burning feeling or a popping when the injury occurs. You have pain when walking or when bending or straightening your leg. A few days after the injury, you may have bruising on your leg just below the injury.
Your health care provider will examine your leg and find tenderness at the site of the injury.
Treatment may include:
As you return to your activity, you may be given an elastic thigh wrap to give extra support to your hamstrings. While you are recovering from your injury, you will need to change your sport or activity to one that does not make your condition worse. For example, you may need to swim or bicycle instead of run.
The goal of rehabilitation is to return you to your sport or activity as soon as is safely possible. If you return too soon you may worsen your injury, which could lead to permanent damage. Everyone recovers from injury at a different rate. Return to your sport or activity will be determined by how soon your leg recovers, not by how many days or weeks it has been since your injury occurred. In general, the longer you have symptoms before you start treatment, the longer it will take to get better.
You may safely return to your sport or activity when, starting from the top of the list and progressing to the end, each of the following is true:
A hamstring strain is best prevented by warming up properly and stretching your hamstring muscles prior to your activities. This is especially important in sprinting or jumping.