Jonathan Rea undergoes surgery to cure arm pump

Jonathan Rea undergoes surgery to cure arm pump.

World Superbike Champion Jonathan Rea has successfully undergone arm surgery to relieve compartment syndrome, a condition with which he has suffered for most of his racing career.

Arm-pump, or compartment syndrome, is a condition caused by increased pressure in the body’s muscles. The pressure creates a decrease in blood flow to the affected area, which leads to a deprivation of oxygen to the muscles. Doctor Jordi Font (pictured above, left) performed the surgery in Barcelona’s Mi Tres Torres Hospital yesterday (Tuesday), and it’s a procedure which many elite motorcyclists undergo to eradicate the problem.

Rea will now return home to the Isle of Man to continue his rehabilitation, before travelling to Australia to begin his pre-season training program ahead of the 2017 Superbike World Championship.

Rea said: “I’m very happy with the surgery as I have been struggling with this condition for a long time. I found myself not only suffering physically, but mentally as it took a lot of focus away when I was racing.

“Some circuits on the calendar present a bigger problem than others, so I’m excited to be able to try and get on top of this problem. I am even more motivated to win a third WorldSBK Championship so this is an area where I can improve myself. I really want to thank my team manager Guim and everyone at KRT for their support; plus Dr Font and all his staff at Mi Tres Torres for looking after me.”

Dr Font added: “We successfully operated on Mr. Rea and we found strong pressure in the forearm muscle compartments, both in the flexor and the tensor of his right arm. For sure he must have gone through some issues while riding his bike, penalising his performance. Again, the operation was successful and next week Jonathan will start a rehabilitation program to be 100% for the coming season.”