Derek L. Hill, D.O.

Fellowship-Trained Orthopedic Surgeon and Specialist

All About Overuse Knee Syndromes & How To Avoid Them

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Pixmac000000008208Overuse knee syndromes is a term that is used to cover iliotibial band syndrome (runner’s knee), patellar tendonitis (jumper’s knee), patellofemoral joint pain (anterior knee pain) and quadriceps tendonitis. All of these conditions are characterized by pain in the knee joint, which is not related to a specific injury.

Iliotibial band syndrome is typified by an ache on the lateral (outside) part of the knee, usually above the joint, and experienced when the knee is bent. The ache of patellofemoral joint pain is felt around the patella (kneecap). The pain of quadriceps tendonitis is felt above the kneecap, while that of patella tendonitis is felt below it. This pain of patella tendonitis is most felt after landing from a jump.

Most overuse knee syndromes can be prevented by working out to develop muscle strength and flexibility before engaging in sporting activities. These conditioning exercises should be done for at least one month before the sporting season.

Warming up before engaging in the actual sporting activity is another thing that can be done to prevent overuse knee syndromes. This can be as simple as jogging for 10 minutes and stretching to prime the muscles by loosening them and increasing their blood supply.

Cooling down after the sporting activity should also be done to help the muscles and tendons return to their resting state. This can be done by walking for 5 minutes and stretching the knee muscles, while they are still warm from the exercise session.

Wearing appropriate sporting shoes with arch and outer supports can also help prevent overuse knee syndromes. Protective gear like kneepads should also be worn when playing games like volleyball.

Written by: Marian Kim, FizzNiche Staff Writer

Strengthen Them From Every Angle

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Pixmac000000008208Strengthen your knees from every angle to decrease wear and tear, decrease pain and improve function.  One of the best and simplest pieces of equipment to help do this is a BAPS board. It is basically a small teeter totter that forces you to control your body in multiple angles.

To do this effectively, you need to fire muscles in all directions and planes.  It also improves something called proprioception, which is a fancy term to describe the ability to know where your body is in space.

To protect your knees, or any joint for that matter, strengthen the muscles proximal and distal to the joint.  For the knee, this means knee flexion exercises to strengthen the hamstrings and knee extension exercises to strengthen the quadriceps.

To decrease force across your patella-femoral joint, it is best to do knee extension exercises only through the final 40 degrees of motion.  This also serves to isolate and strengthen the VMO or vastus medialis oblique, which will help with patella tracking and decrease anterior knee pain and degeneration.

Flexibility is important to remember when strengthening the knees.  You want your legs to be able to perform optimally throughout their full range of motion.  Strength and flexibility have to be balanced in all of your muscles.

In particular, don’t neglect stretching your quadriceps.  Do this by lying 0n your stomach and reaching back and pulling your heels to your back.  You can also stand holding onto a railing and pull your knees up to your back to stretch your thighs.

Written by: Paul T Scheatzle, DO Physician/Author

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About the Author

Paul Scheatzle is a Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Physician and Author of the book “The Journey: Take the Path to Health and Fitness.”