The bigger picture

Shin splints is a term used to describe a painful injury to the muscles, tendons or bone in the shin. As well as the reasons mentioned above, it can by caused by other issues, including:

• Small breaks (stress fractures) in the shin bone (tibia), caused by repeated impact
• Overuse of the muscles at the front of the leg (biomechanical overload)
• Inflammation of the tendons that attach muscles to the tibia (tendonitis)
• Pressure build-up in the muscles, which makes them swell and leads to compartment syndrome
• Inflammation of the connective tissue covering the tibia (the periosteum). This is known as medial tibial stress syndrome.
• Usually, shin splints heal on their own, providing self care advice is followed, although occasionally, surgery may be recommended.
• Other conditions that can cause similar symptoms include muscle hernias, nerve problems in the lower back and deep vein thrombosis (DVT).