Most common knee pain – Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome (PFPS), What is it?

PFPS, is one of the most common of all kinds of knee pain which causes pain around your kneecap. You don’t need to be a runner or a physically active person to get it, if you are spending more than 4-6 hours a day, sitting in front of a computer, your knees are also in risk.

You may have PFPS if you have:

• Pain around or below your kneecap,
• Difficulties in standing up after sitting for a while,
• Discomfort in climbing and ascending stairs,
• An urge to change your sitting position frequently.

This kind of knee pain is caused by the muscle imbalances between our Quadriceps Femoris and Hamstring muscle groups, and generally it is relieved by physical therapy, without medicine or surgery.

It is said that “staying active” or “taking some rest” will solve the problem, but it is important for you to know how to stay active while you are in pain, without worsening it and also how to get some rest while you are expecting a recovery. For this reason, EXERCISE is the first and most important recommendation in PFPS. The majority of exercise programs focus on Quadriceps Femoris strengthening, because it helps to stabilize the patella (your kneecap), and correcting the imbalance of front and back muscles around your knee.

If you want to know more about how to get rid of unpleasant knee pain with the use of tailored exercise programs as well as individualised assessment to understand the cause of your knee pain, let one of our physios help you!

By: Irem Akinci-Physiotherapist