Sports And Remedial Massage Therapy by Mel Cash

Author:Mel Cash [Cash, Mel]
Language: eng
Format: azw3, epub
ISBN: 9781407080482
Publisher: Ebury Publishing
Published: 2012-08-31T04:00:00+00:00

This is the large muscle of the upper arm most noted as the powerful flexor of the elbow, but it is actually a two-joint muscle, which also assists shoulder movement and forearm supination. When lifting a heavy object, the elbow and shoulder move together, as the biceps muscle is primarily involved. It also assists in supination of the lower arm, which is functionally a more powerful action than pronation.

The biceps brachii is a purely voluntary muscle, which gets heavily used in many activities. Although it responds well to strength training, it commonly becomes strained with repetitive use or overload. It has a rich blood supply and is easy to rest when injured, so it usually recovers quickly. However, holding the muscle in a shortened position to aid recovery can lead to the tissues remaining short and tight afterwards.

Chronic shortening of the muscle is sometimes seen in people who subject it to heavy loading without proper stretching. A muscle produces its greatest force in its inner range, and in an effort to lift greater weight the individual has to limit movement to within that range. Without proper stretching of the muscle afterwards, it can permanently shorten, eventually, and full elbow extension then becomes impossible.

The tendon at the insertion into the lower arm is very strong, and a considerable force of contraction converges into it from the muscle. Scar tissue from micro-trauma is therefore most likely to develop here, around the muscle tendon junction.

The muscle has two tendon heads, the longer one passing over the top of the head of the humerus and through the joint, to attach above the glenoid cavity (joint socket). Repetitive muscle contraction in conjunction with a high arm and shoulder movements can cause this tendon to rub against the bony joint structures and become inflamed (tendonitis). This is a common cause of shoulder pain, and the whole muscle needs to be treated as well as the local area of pain. Occasionally the tendon of the long head can slip round to the front of the joint, if its retaining ligament becomes stretched. Although this may not cause much pain, it needs to be medically assessed as massage can do nothing to relocate it.

Treatment

The belly of the biceps muscle can be treated with the patient’s elbow slightly flexed, to shorten and relax it, but the elbow must be extended to allow friction around the distal insertion. Stroking up the muscle, the therapist’s fingers or thumbs can follow the fibres up into the tendons and trace their path under the deltoid (which needs to be softened first) through to their insertion. Any points along the tendons that feel thick, tense or painful should be treated gently with friction techniques. It is advisable to ice the tendon after treatment, especially in post-acute conditions. To reach the deeper muscle fibres, friction can be applied transversely from the side to work between the muscle and the bone.

Stroking along the biceps brachii muscle with the heel of the palm.

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