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    sports-medicine

    Stress Fractures (adjunctive care)

    Also known as: stress fracture, bone stress injury, hairline fracture

    Stress fractures are small cracks in bone from repeated loading — classically in runners and athletes, and in bones weakened by low nutrition or low hormones. Rest and graduated loading are the core; some sites need specialist care. Chinese medicine supports kidney-bone, qi-blood and stasis patterns alongside.

    Plain-English one-pager you can print or hand to a patient. Free, no sign-in needed.

    All clinical details on this page are for practitioner premium subscribers only.
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    Lifestyle & Diet

    • •Rest and a gradual return are the core — follow the loading plan.
    • •Review nutrition, energy intake and menstrual/health status with your clinician.
    • •High-risk sites (hip, pelvis) need specialist care.
    • •Adequate vitamin D and calcium.

    Cautions & Contraindications

    See sources
    • •No deep needling over the fracture site.[]

    When to reassess or seek care again

    See sources

    Review at 4–6 weeks with imaging as scheduled: healing, loading tolerance.

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    Sources & Further Reading

    Clinical guidance, red flags and safety notes on this page draw on the following current sources alongside the classical references above.

    1. NHS · 2024
    2. Healthdirect Australia · 2024
    3. National Library of Medicine · 2024

    Educational reference for licensed practitioners. Not a substitute for individual clinical assessment. Refer to conventional care for any red-flag or undiagnosed presentation.