Patellofemoral Pain: Hip and Knee Strengthening is Vital!

The patellofemoral joint is the joint under your knee cap. Often, we have pain here that makes it difficult to walk, go up and down stairs, and squatting or sitting down and getting up. Frequently, we can hear our kneecaps clicking when we bend and straighten our knees too, and it is painful. 

Numerous studies show that strengthening the muscles around the knee and the hip is extremely beneficial for patellofemoral pain. A recent systematic review reviewed multiple journal articles comparing whether or not hip strengthening, knee strengthening or hip and knee strengthening together was the best treatment for knee cap pain. 

What They Found

Hip-only strengthening programs and hip and knee strengthening programs resulted in more pain relief and improved function than knee-only exercises. This continues to support the fact that hip strengthening is vital to rehabbing this specific diagnosis [1].

Here are some suggested exercises you can do to help decrease your pain in your patellofemoral joint:

It is important that your physical therapist incorporate hip and knee strengthening into your rehab routine if you suffer from patellofemoral pain. There is a range of easy to advanced exercises you can do to help strengthen your hip muscles and the muscles around your knee. It is paramount that you continue to increase the intensity to allow your muscles to grow stronger. 

Try these exercises at home before or after a workout. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to one of our physical therapists at SetPT here. Happy Moving! 

Source:

Manojlović, D., Kozinc, Ž. and Šarabon, N., 2021. Trunk, Hip and Knee Exercise Programs for Pain Relief, Functional Performance and Muscle Strength in Patellofemoral Pain: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Journal of Pain Research, Volume 14, pp.1431-1449.