Week 11 NFL Injury Spotlight is Kenneth Walker of the Seattle Seahawks.

Kenneth Walker of the Seattle Seahawks. Walker missed Week 12 game due to oblique strain. The NFL has seen many oblique and abdominal strains this season as it is common during the season.

What is the oblique and why is it important? Well we all have an internal and external oblique on both sides of our body. They are our waist muscles. They control forward bending, side bending, twisting of torso, and help with breathing.

It is unsure if the external or internal oblique was injured in Walker, but we do know that an oblique strain can be debilitating. Due to the obliques being key core stabilization muscles, an oblique strain can cause pain with many movements. He could experience pain with running, walking, bending, lifting, and even breathing.

So what is the treatment for an oblique strain in PT? Treatment includes

⁃ STM to pt abdominals and obliques to pt tolerance
⁃ Isometric core strengthening activities such as side planks/regular planks
⁃ Concentric core strengthening with LE/UE movements to promote functional stability
⁃ Glute, quad, hamstring, and hip flexor strengthening to help with core stability and in jury prevention
⁃ Neuro re-education for proper lifting and carrying mechanics so as to not recruit low back and use core and LE’s for support

Kenneth Walker is unlikely to play for Week 13 due to this injury, but may be available within the next month dependent on which muscle was injured and the severity of strain.