Over 1.2 million of us enjoy Netball every year, with over 5000 clubs and 730 associations across Australia. Being a school-time favourite, it’s also a sport that many of our kids will try during their school years, with Ausplay data positioning it as the leading sport for women and girls in Australia.

As netball places great demands on the body, from staying quick on your feet, rapid changes in direction and repetitive sprinting, jumping and landing, leg pain is a leading injury – and problem that we see and treat regularly at Sole Motion Podiatry. This is even more true for our young netball players, who are still growing, developing, finding their footing and learning those important, life-long coordination and balance skills. 

So what does shin pain in young netball players mean, why does it happen, and what should you do to help prevent it or treat it when it starts? Today our podiatry team, who specialises in sports medicine and work alongside a number of sports clubs in Melbourne’s Point Cook and the surrounds, answer all of this for you.

 

First: A quick word of warning about ‘shin splints’

 

Before we get into the causes of shin pain in netball players, we must issue a word of warning. It’s about the term “shin splints”. All too often we see well-meaning practitioners throw around the diagnosis of ‘shin splints’ when anyone comes in with notable pain originating at the front of the shins. Given the location of the pain and the name, most people don’t question it. 

So, when they come home and start learning more about their condition, or talk to friends that have also had a shin splints diagnosis, they get all sorts of different information – as well as mixed advice and tips on how to get the best and fastest outcomes.

The truth is that ‘shin splints’ is far too overused, and not specific or helpful at all, aside from the phrase being commonly known. There are actually three specific conditions that fall under the category of shin splints that we’re about to mention, and if you’re seeing a team that specialises in sports medicine as we do here, they’ll be able to help you understand what’s really going on. 

We wanted to point this out because we see too many frustrated parents (whether the frustration is for themselves or on behalf of their kids) that have ongoing pain and poor results when it comes to their “shin splints”, with practitioners ultimately telling them to get on the sideline and stay there until they start feeling improvement. If this is the case, it’s likely that your diagnosis hasn’t been specific enough, and the right steps aren’t being taken to properly address the real problem. 

If you need a second opinion on your shin pain, we’re always here to help.

 

Netball shin pain: What does it mean?

 

Back to it! So as we’ve touched on, there are three conditions that tend to be lumped under ‘shin splints’ that tend to cause the majority of shin pain in Netball.

1. Medial tibial stress syndrome (MTSS)

Usually when you get diagnosed with ‘shin splints’, this is what you have. In MTSS, your child will be having excessive strain and tension on the front and inside border of their shin bone (tibia). The stress may be linked to the muscles attaching to the shin bone, which are constantly on the go and activated during running in netball, or from the lining of the shin bone itself as the muscles repetitively pull on it. The result is pain and swelling, often during or after a game or training session.

It’s not just the physical activity in netball that can bring on MTSS – your child’s foot posture, foot and leg alignment, biomechanical function and netball shoes can also play a big role – or be the reason for the tense and overworked muscles.

 

2. Compartment syndrome (anterior)

Your lower leg, around the shins, has four ‘compartments’. Each contains muscles, tissues, nerves and arteries, and is enclosed by a lining tissue that prevents the compartment from over-expanding.

When one or more muscles within the compartment at the front of the shins (the anterior compartment) are overused, the muscles swell, resulting in a painful, tight feeling at the front of the shins. This pressure and discomfort can settle after rest, and come back the next time your child starts training or running.

Note: this is also known as chronic compartment syndrome, and is very different from acute compartment syndrome which is considered a medical emergency.

 

3. Tibial stress fracture

Unlike regular fractures which are better known as broken bones, stress fractures develop gradually over time when excess and repetitive stress is placed on a bone – in this case, the shin bone. Usually, this fracture will start as a dull ache or niggle. Your child may not even mention it – or may make a passing comment that their leg was a bit achy during or after the game, but usually feels better after resting.

Without the right care, and with ongoing stress on the bone (which, like MTSS, is often caused by alignment and biomechanical issues), the fracture worsens and becomes more painful. Stress fractures can take weeks to show up on x-rays, hence it is often initially diagnosed as with the broader term ‘shin splints’.

 

What can you do to help your child prevent shin pain?

 

We place a great value on injury prevention – because it’s often very simple, and comes with a range of other benefits for your kids.

Preventing any injury is about understanding what can cause it, and managing those causes. When it comes to shin pain, the most common causes for these overuse injuries are associated with: 

• Alignment problems
• Poor foot posture
• Unsuitable footwear
• Inadequate or imbalanced muscle strength
• Muscle tightness

 

Your child may only have one significant ‘injury risk’, or they may have many. What we do for kids, especially if they’re training multiple times per week, or are part of (or hoping to be part of) a top netball team, is perform a biomechanical assessment that shows us what these injury risks are, and then we help you manage them.

For example, if your child has problems with their hip flexors, has one foot that is notably flatter than the other which is throwing off their biomechanics when they walk or run, or their shoes aren’t doing a good job of supporting their ankle, then these are all things that we can easily and straightforwardly address.

The benefits of managing these problems often extend far beyond just minimising netball injuries. When our muscles, bones and joints are working optimally, we also tend to get less tired, feel more comfortable, and generally perform better during sports too. This is the feedback we get from many parents – noticing that a pain their child would infrequently complain of at their hips or knees has no longer been bothering them.

 

How should netball shin pain be treated?

 

The first questions are: (1) what’s the diagnosis? and (2) who is the child? 

Here at Sole Motion, we don’t treat generalised ‘shin splints’ using a cookie-cutter or one-size-fits-all method. Every child has unique foot and leg characteristics, participates in a range of different sports outside of netball, and feels comfortable doing different things. Some children are happy to stick to a regular stretching routine, while others need a little more encouragement and adjustment to make the activities more ‘fun’ or interactive with their parents. Some kids we treat are 4 or 5 years old and just starting out. Others are in their top school or club netball team.

While we have a range of ‘tools in the toolbox’ ranging from custom foot orthotics to gait re-training, the final treatment plan really depends on what your child needs, will benefit most from at whatever sports level and age they’re at, and what they’ll actually do. 

 

We pride ourselves on delivering a world-class service from a team that works extensively with kids, and in sports medicine. We’re always here to help. Book your appointment online here or call us on 1300-FX-FEET