Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome Health Video

Video Transcript

DR. WALT LOWE: We're here to talk about patellofemoral pain. Patellofemoral pain is a catch-all term that refers to pain happening on the top of the knee right underneath the knee cap. We see patellofemoral pain in a lot of different groups of athletes, but patellofemoral pain is our biggest problem in the young female athlete. There are a lot of reasons we see patellofemoral pain, but most commonly this is a weak quadriceps muscle being asked to do jumping, running activities that the knee is not prepared for. With patellofemoral pain, there is typically no swelling in the knee. There is pain when you walk up and down stairs. There can be pain when you sit for a long time with your knee bent. And the pain can be quite severe to the point that it limits young, athletic patients from running, cutting, jumping, playing the sports they enjoy. Treatment of patellofemoral pain, especially in the young female athlete, is always from a rehabilitative point of view. Rehabilitation used to be to regain normal range of motion, make sure any of the muscle groups that surround the knee, the quadriceps muscle, the hamstring muscles, the IT band, are all stretched out and that each one of those muscle groups are strong. We have some ways to help prevent it also. And those girls with alignment where they have very knocked knees and that is sometimes the use of orthotics or the use of braces to help support the kneecap can help them play and keep the pain to a minimum. It is very unusual for patellofemoral pain, especially in the young female athlete, to require surgery to the point that I would caution the parents that have young athletes with patellofemoral pain from proceeding with surgical answers to this without multiple opinions.