Hamstring Injuries
Medical Author: William C. Shiel Jr., MD, FACR, FACR
Medical Editor: Charles Davis, MD, PhD
What are the hamstrings?
The hamstrings are the tendons that attach the large muscles at the back of the thigh to bone. The hamstring muscles are the large muscles that pull on these tendons. It has become common in layman's terminology (and by some medical personnel) to refer to the long muscles at the back of the thigh as the "hamstrings" or "hamstring muscles." Academic anatomists refer to them as the posterior thigh muscles, and more specifically as the semimembranosis, the semitendinosis, and the biceps femoris muscles. These muscles span the thigh, crossing both the hip and the knee. They originate or begin at just below the buttocks, arising from the bone on which we sit (the ischium). They connect by means of their tendons onto the upper parts of the lower leg bones (the tibia and the fibula).
The origin of the word hamstring comes from the old English hamm, meaning thigh.
String refers to the characteristic appearance and feel of the tendons just above the back of the knee. Although the tendons are sometimes involved in injuries, this article will refer to the "hamstrings" as the large muscle group at the back of the thigh because the most frequent problems involve the muscle groups. The second
Web site listed below has a diagram of the hamstrings attached to the lower leg.
What is the function of the hamstrings?
The hamstring muscles actively bend (flex) the knee. They also act
to straighten or (extend) the hip (as in the motion of moving the
thigh backward). Surprisingly, these large muscles are not very
active with normal walking or standing. However, they are extremely
important in power activities such as running, jumping, and
climbing. Thus, sedentary individuals can get by with quite weak or
deconditioned hamstrings, whereas athletes and very physically
active individuals absolutely depend on healthy, well-conditioned
hamstrings.
The power advantages of strong hamstrings have been known for a long
time. In times past, a sword-wielding knight would disable an
opponent by a slice across the back of the thigh. Cruel masters were
known to have severed the hamstrings of domestic slaves or prisoners
in order to make escape less likely. The origin of the term
hamstrung, meaning to have been crippled or held back, is derived
from these practices.
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| Picture of the hamstring muscles |
Next: How can the hamstrings be injured? »
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