How Is a Thigh Muscle Strain Diagnosed?
A physician will start to diagnose a strained muscle in the hip and or thigh by discussing your medical history and by gathering information about the injury.
They will also ask you about your symptoms and check your thigh and hip area for bruising and tenderness.
A physician will then examine the range of motion in your hip and knee joints by asking you to bend and straighten your knee.
A physician will most likely take diagnostic images such as x-rays of the area.
Based on the information your physician collects, they will diagnose your muscle strain on a scale of 1 to 3 based on the degree of severity.
The degrees of muscle strain severity are listed and explained below:
First-degree strain: Damage to a few muscle fibers. Symptoms may not be fully apparent right after the incident. There might be a feeling of cramps or tightness in the thigh muscles.
This type of injury can most likely heal rather quickly.
Second-degree strain: Extensive damage to the muscle fibers. There is usually severe pain immediately after the injury. The thigh is usually sore to the touch and there is pain when walking.
Third-degree strain: A serious injury where the muscle has completely ruptured. There is an immediate pain after the injury that can be described as “burning and stabbing” that causes the injured person to be unable to walk.
With this degree of strain, there is usually bruising and a depression located on the thigh where the tear is.
What Is the Treatment for a Strained Thigh Muscle?
Hip and thigh muscle strains can often heal without surgery. Resting the leg will relieve the pressure on the muscle and slightly ease the pain until active rehabilitation can be started.