Dr. Jung adds more perspective to Chargers quarterback foot injury.
Article: Bad news for Chargers: Justin Herbert’s foot injury requires a boot for weeks (msn.com)
The Chargers, who have a long history of losing key players to injury, are suddenly dealing with uncertainty at their most important position.
Quarterback Justin Herbert will wear a boot for approximately two weeks because of a plantar fascia injury in his right foot, the team announced Wednesday.
“If you have an injury to your plantar fascia, it may be more like a strain or partial tearing,” said Dr. Kenneth Jung, who is not treating Herbert but spoke generally about the condition. “If he’s going to be in a boot for a couple weeks, then most likely it’s not a rupture. It’s your arch ligament, so if he strained it or had a partial tear, that sounds like it would be consistent with that treatment.”
Jung, an orthopedic foot and ankle surgeon at Cedars-Sinai Kerlan-Jobe Institute, said such injuries to the arch of the foot can progress if the patient returns to full activity too early.
“If it’s something where they’re shutting him down, then it may be something where you don’t want to jeopardize the structure of the plantar fascia,” he said. “If it’s the middle of the season, it’s probably something that you play through. But at this point, they’ve got a long way to go.”
Former NFL quarterback Erik Kramer remembers playing through the pain of a plantar fascia injury.
“It’s kind of like a hamstring injury,” he said. “They might call it a four- to six-week injury, but the worst thing you can do is give that injury four weeks. Better to give it eight than six. If you don’t rest it up beyond when it feels good, you’re going to do it again.”
