Lack of certain minerals in the body can provoke pain in the calf of the right leg. For many, the syndrome is observed against the background of inflammatory processes, while in others it is accompanied by excess loads. There are a lot of factors that can cause pain, and it is impossible to determine what was the root cause, based only on the symptom. If the leg hurts, you should seek the help of a doctor.
general information
Do not underestimate the pain in the calf of the right leg: a phenomenon can indicate a serious illness. The calf muscle belongs to the class of biceps. It is located in the frontal tibial plane. In many ways, it is this muscle that provides the ability to move, squat, and stand on socks. The soreness of this area at least once in a life bothered almost any person. Sometimes the reason is commonplace - a person is very tired. In some cases, pain is formed due to poorly selected diet or some kind of disease. In practice, however, most often people report a syndrome due to overload. This often accompanies professional sports. When the body gets used to a new level of physical stress, the pain gradually goes away.
The pain in the calf of the right leg is well known to people who lead a too stationary lifestyle. Lack of movement, followed by sharp activity, necessarily leads to the formation of a painful focus, since muscle fibers do not receive the necessary nutrition, oxygen molecules. Vascular insufficiency is observed, accompanied by the accumulation of toxic substances.
Causes and consequences
Sometimes pain in the calf of the right leg occurs due to varicose veins. With this pathological condition, venous outflow is disrupted, blood stagnates in the vascular system, causing increased pressure on the walls. Because of it, nerve endings localized in the surrounding muscle tissue suffer, and a pain syndrome is initiated. Varicose veins provoke persistent, chronic pain.
In some, the pain is due to atherosclerosis. The term refers to an inflammatory process in which the vascular walls become thicker. With atherosclerosis, the veins can become clogged. The consequence of this complication can be fatal. Atherosclerosis can be suspected if the legs are constantly cold, do not warm up, and aching muscles in the muscles appear during the period of movement.
Sometimes calves in people suffering from inflammation of the sciatic nerve. Soreness due to the pathological process can spread to the leg muscle tissue. Neuralgia, covering different muscles of the body, is no less likely. Usually the pain comes after some provocateur - careless movement, a breath of wind, an illness. Sensations worry for a period, then fade.
What else happens?
Sometimes it reduces calves, pain in the lower extremities occurs, because myositis has developed. The term refers to a pathology that encompasses muscle tissue. Myositis is a consequence of parasitic invasion or another disease that has been transmitted before. A distinctive feature is severe pain, accompanied by a risk of absolute muscle atrophy.
Pain can be disturbing due to osteomyelitis. Such a disease usually appears at a minor age. The term refers to an infectious lesion of the skeletal system. Chronic convulsions can occur against the background of frequent excessive tissue fatigue.
These conditions manifest themselves with similar symptoms, so it is unlikely to differentiate the disease on their own. It is recommended to see a doctor who will direct you to tests and instrumental examinations. Based on their results, it will become clear what needs to be treated.
And it swells and hurts: all at once
If the numbness of the calf of the right leg is accompanied by swelling of the limb, the cause may be an incorrect diet. Probably, a person is too rich in salt, and then drinks a lot of liquid. Salt provokes the accumulation of fluid in the tissues, causing the body to swell. No less likely is a violation of the water-salt balance. It is accompanied by the occurrence of edema due to a lack of fluid at the cellular level. Edema of the legs disturb pregnant women.
It is known that legs swell and hurt, they are disturbed by convulsive phenomena if a person suffers from insufficient heart function. A distinctive feature is the formation of swelling in the ankle with subsequent spread up. Sometimes the syndrome is observed on both limbs. If you press on the foot, you can see a slowly recovering fossa. Symptoms are activated in the evening.
Internal systems and problems of their work
Lymphadrem is one of the possible reasons why the right leg hurts in the calf area. The term refers to such a pathological condition when fluid accumulates in the lymphatic system. Accompanying phenomena - the severity of the limbs, a feeling of fullness. Initially, there is swelling in the ankle, gradually spreading higher. Symptoms are expressed in the evening, disappear during a night's rest.
Loads and their consequences
Very often, cramps in the calf muscle occur at night in people involved in sports. This applies equally to both professionals and amateurs. Soreness accompanies the recovery period after training, if during exercise the load was incorrectly and unsuccessfully set. Typically, specific soreness appears on the second day after the last workout. Symptom indicates restoration of muscle tissue cells.
The strength of the pain, the intensity of the syndrome depends on the load on the workout. The more often a person will be engaged, the less will be the consequences of each new practice. Over time, probably, the discomfort will completely disappear. During the period of active muscle growth, there is almost no soreness, so bodybuilder training is not accompanied by such a side effect.
How to help yourself?
To cramp in the calf muscles at night less worried, pain did not interfere in everyday life, before training, you need to do a warm-up. For her, a set of exercises is selected that optimize the flow of blood in muscle tissues. This will provide adequate sports nutrition for all internal structures in need during sports.
After training, it is recommended to take a contrast shower. It stimulates blood flow, as a result, muscles recover faster. Athletes (both amateurs and professionals) are recommended to regularly do massage procedures. During manual exposure, muscles relax and blood flow stabilizes.
A very simple and surprisingly effective remedy is daytime sleep. Scientists believe that it positively affects the processes occurring in the body, stimulates cell regeneration.
Night cramps: features
If such a syndrome starts to bother, it’s impossible not to think about why it brings the calves down at night, because it interferes with sleep, and awakening in fear is not the most pleasant thing a person can survive. Doctors say that convulsions most often bother precisely during a night's rest. For some, this indicates a lack of vitamins in the body, for others it is a symptom of a serious illness. Usually the duration of the convulsive period is from a couple of seconds to a quarter of an hour. Sensations come unpredictably, all of a sudden. During the cramp, muscle tissue is tight, the leg is hard to the touch - many compare the sensation to touching a stone.
If a cramp occurs at night, it often first covers the calf, then spreads to the foot. Doctors, explaining why he puts his calves down at night, pay attention: the cause may be excessive stress, but this applies to those who are awake and are actively engaged in something. If a person was asleep, there is no such context, so other factors must be sought. Doctors have found that the frequency of nocturnal leg cramps increases with age. When a phenomenon occurs, a person immediately wakes up and unknowingly grabs a worrying place, hoping to get rid of unpleasant sensations.
What initiates?
Perhaps night cramps are a symptom of a neurological disorder. Convulsion in the afternoon can also manifest itself in this phenomenon. Another possible explanation is the lack of mineral compounds in the body. Seizures can occur if there is too little phosphorus, calcium. Sleep is accompanied by a slowdown in metabolic processes and blood flow, so the muscles do not receive the necessary nutrition. In elderly people, convulsions can occur at an unpredictable time of day. It is explained by poor quality of blood flow. It is known that in some cases the condition is associated with taking medications that adversely affect blood circulation. If the metabolism is impaired, the person is forced to use diuretics, if, shortly before sleep, a person is faced with increased physical exertion, there is a high probability of awakening from leg spasms. Such phenomena are frequent in pregnant women.
Diagnoses and symptoms: features
It is known that soreness of the legs often accompanies thrombophlebitis. In this pathological process, the veins of the lower leg become inflamed, the legs swell, and the soreness is formed in separate sections, points. Phlebothrombosis can be seen in the appearance of the legs: the skin turns red, heat is felt near the veins, spasms come from time to time, accompanied by pain.
Sometimes leg pain signals an intervertebral hernia. It may indicate a curvature of the spine or osteochondrosis. The legs are part of the body that has a particularly heavy load, so the risk of an inflammatory process increases. But acute, sharp pain often bothers with the neurological causes of the phenomenon. The symptomatology is long, the patient notes a fever, his legs go numb. A spasm comes suddenly, just as unpredictably ends.
Sometimes pain indicates impaired blood flow. In this case, the legs become numb, the muscles do not receive the necessary oxygen. At night this can cause convulsions, while awake - severe pain. To correct the condition, you need to identify what prevents the flow of blood, which caused a spasm.
Sore calves during pregnancy
Pain, swelling, tingling in the calf of the right leg are quite common in women expecting a baby. They become more pronounced as the moment of resolution approaches the burden. There are several reasons for this. The fetus grows, while the pressure on the mother's body increases, weight and volume are added. All this increases the load on the lower limbs. Since the increase is quite fast, the body cannot adjust to it and pressure becomes the cause of edema and pain. Simultaneously with the change in weight, the center of gravity shifts, which adds to the load.
During the bearing of the child, the natural elasticity of the ligamentous elements decreases, which makes the calves hurt more. Many people develop varicose veins during gestation, one of the symptoms of which is pain. The growing fetus compresses the vena cava, making the legs hurt more. In some, due to an increase in the fetus and uterus, the sciatic nerve is pinched. Almost every pregnant woman faces problems with the balance of salts and fluids in the body, many have a deficiency of phosphorus and calcium. At the same time, the hormonal background is greatly adjusted, which makes the tissues lack the substances necessary for the normal functioning.
How can I help you?
If problems are observed during pregnancy, it is necessary to select correction methods only after finding out the causes of pain in the calf muscles. Treatment should be safe for both the mother and the fetus. First, a set of corrective measures is formed without the inclusion of medications. It is recommended to review the shoes in stock, change it to a more comfortable one. For expectant women, bandages, bandages and compresses from elastic materials have been developed. Do not neglect them.
Doctors recommend more to be in a horizontal position. Avoid prolonged standing. You should often take a contrast shower, do foot baths. In the morning, exercise is practiced, and in the evening - light gymnastic exercises that stimulate blood flow. Swimming or other sporting quiet activities will benefit. It is recommended to include more foods rich in phosphorus and calcium in the diet.
Severe pain: how can I help myself?
Correction methods should be chosen after first finding out the causes of pain in the calf muscles. Treatment depends on the diagnosis. Some pathologies that provoke soreness have been described above, they all require different therapeutic courses. It is better to entrust the development of the program to an experienced doctor. If the pain is worried for a long time, it does not work out, it is urgent to see a specialist. The doctor will evaluate the condition and recommend which creams and other medicines will give a pronounced result. They may be advised to agree to an operation.
To make pain in the calf of the right leg less frequent at night, you should use knee-high stockings, stockings made of special materials - they are called compression. It is better to wear such products regularly, and if not possible, then wear them during the night's rest. From the wardrobe should be completely excluded products with high heels, platform. Massage will be helpful. You can sign up for a session of several procedures for greater effectiveness. At home, you should do foot baths, douches, take a contrast shower. If the work process forces you to sit for a long time, you need to walk and warm up regularly. Doctors advise revising the diet and include more products enriched with calcium, phosphorus, tocopherol.
Special case: the child is ill
If the child complains that he pulls the calf of his right leg when walking, you must show him to the pediatrician. Often there is no reason to worry: sensations are associated with active growth. The skeleton can increase in size faster than muscle tissue, the growth process becomes uneven and is accompanied by discomfort, which will pass over time. For the same reason, in some children, limbs hurt only during night rest. During the day, blood flow in the muscles is active, and at night it slows down, while the increased need for active components persists. To improve the condition, it is necessary to lightly stroke the diseased limb. You can gently massage the disturbing areas.
Sometimes, a pulling pain in the calf of the right leg indicates a disease. Often children suffer from scoliosis. There is a chance of osteochondrosis. With soreness in the legs, it is necessary to check the child for flat feet. With such pathological conditions, the person’s center of gravity shifts, the weight is distributed incorrectly, unevenly. As a result, the limbs respond with pain. Similar manifestations may indicate endocrine system pathologies. Here, the syndrome is associated with malfunctioning of the thyroid gland. There is a risk of diabetes. Under the influence of diseases, the mineralization of the blood that nourishes muscle tissue is disrupted, the cells do not receive much-needed trace elements.
Factors: what else?
Sometimes a throbbing pain in the calf of the right leg can form due to neurocirculatory dystonia. This pathological condition does not allow the child to actively move, as a result, muscle tissue grows very weak, can not cope with the load of the body. Similar problems can occur with congenital diseases of the heart or vascular system. With these pathologies, the quality of blood flow suffers greatly. In many children, limb problems are associated with an improperly selected, poorly balanced diet. The reason may be excessive exercise.
What to accept?
If sharp pains in the calf of the right leg are concerned, Panangin can help. The drug Asparkam has a similar effect. These drugs provide the intake of potassium, magnesium. Minerals are essential for the functioning of the heart and blood vessels. The therapeutic course helps prevent the occurrence of convulsions, relieves pain.
Doctors advise taking vitamin complexes containing magnesium, calciferol, vitamin B6. You can use these nutrients separately. Products help prevent negative processes in the muscles, tissues of the supporting system. Their correct use eliminates bouts of pain.