Leg Pain
While leg pain is a fairly common ailment following an injury, there are also many non-traumatic causes of leg pain.
Pain in the legs can be present because of conditions that affect the bones, muscles, tendons, nerves and joints.
The leg contains many important joints that allow the body to maintain balance, to walk and to run. The major joints
in the leg (the hip, knee, and ankle) are both very important and very susceptible to pain and discomfort. The small
joints in the feet and toes are also important since they support the body and diffuse the force that is generated by walking.
A trauma to the leg is the most common cause of leg pain. Falls, near falls, and twisting injuries can damage bones, muscles and joints,
and pain from injury can inflame the sciatic nerve and cause pain that radiates down the leg.
Another type of leg pain is diabetic neuropathy; some sufferers of diabetes will experience this illness. It is characterized by pain and/or
loss of sensation in the feet. This is dangerous because surface trauma to the feet or legs can go unnoticed, and therefore become infected.
Injured muscles can also cause pain because of inflammation and swelling, and it may also affect the balance of muscles surrounding a joint.
If this imbalance persists, the joint may start to hurt because of the stress placed on it.