Running Knee Pain And Patellofemoral Syndrome - 5 Treatment Plans For Runner's Knee

Runner's knee is one the most common injury faced by many athletes. This injury definitely puts an end to any training program, even if the runner ignores it or is unaware of it; eventually the agonizing pain will catch up and force the runner from going any further. Thus shooting down any running goals or aspirations.

Causes of runner's knee

Your first line of defense against this injury should be preventing it from occurring in the first place. If you eliminate the root cause, you won't have to deal with the pain and frustration that comes with it. Here are the main causes:

- Weak and imbalanced leg muscle groups, especially when the quadriceps is weaker than the hamstrings.

- Running on hard surfaces, such as concrete or sidewalks.

- Running in the wrong shoes.

- Bad running form, especially overstriding and improper foot movement. - Overtraining and lack of proper recovery.

- Being unaware of pain signals.

- Problems with the feet...

How to treat runner's knee

Treatment should always be the second option. But when you already have it, it is too late to prevent it; therefore, I'm going to show exactly what you need to do for treating this condition.

1- Cold or hot

You should apply ice on your knee immediately after the training; this can lessen and control the symptoms, thus reducing both pain and inflammation. Later, you could apply heat using a hot bath or a hot pack; this relieves the chronic pain.

2- Limit your training

If you have runner's knee, you should diminish the intensity of training immediately, you could reduce your mileage and avoid running uphill or any of the above causes. But it is recommended to give you knee sufficient time to heal properly.

3- Medication

Anti-inflammatory drugs such as Ibuprofen or aspirin can help a lot with the pain and the swelling around the knee. You could take them during the first 15 days of treatment. A steroid injection may be administrated by a doctor.

4- Physical therapy

Your physical therapy plan should stress on strengthening and flexibility of your leg muscle groups-especially the hamstrings and the quadriceps. In fact, imbalanced leg muscle groups are one of the leading causes of runner's knee.

5- Surgery

Surgery should be your last option for treating runner's knee. Many of the above plans are well proven for alleviating this chronic injury, but if the pain persists, then you may need surgical intervention.