Rectus abdominis overuse injury in a tennis athlete treated with traumeel

BACKGROUND: Rectus abdominis injuries are common in tennis players at all levels of competition. Traumeel(®) injection can be used for treatment of muscle strains and hematomas. CASE REPORT: A 21-year-old female tennis athlete was injured on the non-dominant rectus abdominis during the cocking phase of the service motion. She suffered from pain and tenderness. One week later, during a serve, she experienced severe pain on the contralateral side of her abdomen. Conservative treatment was performed by the team physician with rest, ice therapy and analgesics for 20 days, but she had recurrent injuries. The ultrasonography and MRI showed hematoma of the rectus abdominis muscle. She was treated with 2 injections of Traumeel(®) on the 2(nd), 4(th), 6(th) post-traumatic day and received 1 injection on the 10(th) post-traumatic day. She also modified her serve technique. On the fourth post-treatment week the athlete had pain-free function and both the MRI appearance and the size of rectus abdominal muscle were normal. She returned to her sport activities. There is no recurrence of her injury 2 years later. CONCLUSIONS: Rectus abdominis hematoma must be diagnosed early. Traumeel(®) injections are effective, safe and well-tolerated for the treatment of overuse injury of the rectus abdominis following strain.