A common type of knee pain is patellofemoral pain syndrome or PFPS

What is it:

–       PFPS is pain experienced at the front of knee, normally around the knee cap.

–       It is very common especially in runners

How is it caused?

–       PFPS is normally caused by muscle imbalance and poor alignment at the knee

Symptoms:

–       Pain at the front of the knee

–       Normally worse going downstairs and squatting

–       Can be painful with prolonged sitting

–       Can be associated with crunching or grinding when bending

What can be done to alleviate pain:

–       improve lower limb strength and control; primarily glutes (gluteus medius) and quads (VMO)

–       release lateral structures such as rolling on the ITB

–       improve sequencing of the inside vs outside quad (VMO vs VL)

–       taping the knee cap for pain relief

–       retraining mechanics to improve alignment