After my mysterious foot pain while walking the dogs, I was afraid I might have a stress fracture in my right foot. I’m pretty sure I just stepped wrong, but I’m still curious about stress fractures.
A stress fracture is an overuse injury. In a normal fracture, a sudden, high force event (like a fall) breaks the bone. In a stress fracture, the forces involved are lower but happen repeatedly for a long period of time. You could also call a stress fracture a “fatigue fracture”. They are most often seen in athletes who run and jump on hard surfaces.
Most stress fractures are seen in the feet and shins — this is where most of the weight of your body is supported. However, a stress fracture can happen in any bone. Bone is constantly being formed and reabsorbed by the body. Increasing your activity over a short period of time is one way to cause a stress fracture, because the bone may not be able to keep up with the demand. Increasing your activity gradually allows the bone time to remodel — to grow stronger in the areas of higher stress.
Other things that may cause or contribute to a stress fracture:
- Dietary issues, including eating disorders and calcium deficiency.
- Menstrual irregularities.
Both of the above can contribute to bone health (or lack thereof). Adolescent female athletes are especially high risk for developing stress fractures.
If you suspect that you have a stress fracture, it may be hard to prove it. A doctor often has to go on physical examination and medical history, as stress fractures often don’t show up on x-rays.
Treating a stress fracture:
- Rest the injured area. This may be as simple as avoiding the repetitive activity that caused the injury. In many cases, avoiding the thing that causes pain is the best treatment.
- Ice the injured area to relieve pain and swelling. Twenty minutes of ice every few hours is best.
- Wear proper footwear when you’re active.
- Increase activities (and intensity of activities) gradually to allow your body time to adjust.
- If pain persists, talk to a medical professional. There may be another problem besides (or instead of) a stress fracture.