"Get Rid of Your Running Knee Pain Once and For All - The Right Way!
Run Faster, Easier and Longer with Healthy Strong Knees
Dear Runner with Knee Pain
After 25 years of sports medicine and testing hundreds of so-called miracle cures, I found most Runner's knee treatments including surgery are useless and worse most are extremely dangerous.
Sore knees from running or knee pain while running? If you suffer with chronic kneecap or inside knee pain during or after you run,then you may have one of the most common knee problems known as Runners Knee. It is also called Patellofemoral Syndrome (P.F.S), Pre-arthritis and Chondromalacia.
There are many other causes of knee pain while running, so it is best that you confirm any self-diagnosis of Runners Knee with a qualified medical professional like a sports medicine doctor or therapist.
Other causes of running kneepain -
Chronic Subluxing or Dislocating Kneecap (Patella)
Osteoarthritis or common arthritis
Patellar Tendonitis (Osgood-Schlatter Disease in teens and children)
Pre-patellar Bursitis
Quadriceps Tendonitis
Iliotibial Band Syndrome
Medial meniscus tear
What is Runner's Knee?
It is early damage to the back of the knee cap cartilage, causing pain, swelling and inflammation. Often, over the years, this cartilage damage progresses to full, common knee arthritis or Osteoarthritis.
Signs and Symptoms - usually mild intermittent swelling with pain around the knee cap or, more commonly, on the inside of the knee (medial). Knee pain is worse during activities such as running, jumping, squatting, kneeling, sitting and standing. You feel better with rest, ice and inactivity.
Knee pain is worsened by the following: longer, more intense runs; hard, canted or too soft running surfaces; wrong type of shoe for your body biomechanics; worn-out shoes; poorly-designed foot orthotics fit with poor correction material or cushing.
Diagnostic Testing - Diagnosis is best by history, symptoms and physical exam. Knee arthroscopy will confirm diagnosis but it is not really needed or recommended. X-rays and MRI scans will usually show as normal.
Common Causes – A weak inner quad muscle (VMO) combined with bad joint mechanics from misaligned knee bones - often with functionally flat feet (overpronation) - leads to knee cap (patella) mal-tracking. That, in turn, irritates and eventually wears down the kneecap cartilage.
3-Step Runners Knee Treatment –
Your treatment plan needs to be designed for your body. Here are the treatments in various combinations for runners that have been used successfully in our practice.
1) Reduce Inflammation and Pain – cut down your mileage or stop entirely if possible until your knee pain after running goes away; ice 4 times a day; take *natural anti-inflammatory supplements and treatments - not drugs; patellar taping (McConnell taping); knee exercises for joint synovial fluid movement; cycle and/or swim - cross train, if possible; physical therapy; stretching; knee exercises
2) Find and Correct the Cause – promote correct biomechanics with foot inserts (foot orthotics); wear proper shoes; do knee exercises to strengthen and for neuromuscular re-training of the VMO; avoid eating inflammatory foods
3) Prevent Knee Pain and Inflammation from Returning - exercises to strengthen weak muscles in the hip, knee (quads and hamstrings) and calf - especially the VMO (vastus medialus obliqus); strength weight training; cardiovascular fitness; foot inserts (orthotics); proper shoes; anti-inflammatory diet; fish oil; vitamin D3 supplementation to normal levels; natural anti-inflammatories with healthy joint nutrients
*Anti-inflammatory drugs are not recommended as a first-choice for two reasons: one is the serious side effects like bleeding ulcers, heart attacks and pre-mature death; the second is that this class of drugs actually accelerates cartilage damage causing common arthritis, up to three times faster.
Natural Anti-inflammatories with healthy joint nutrients are much superior choice because they relieve pain and inflammation, while rebuilding and protecting cartilage.
Last Resort and All-Else-Fails Common Knee Treatments - Anti-inflammatory drugs, cortisone injections, Hyaluronic injections, Knee Arthroscopy Surgery.
A final word of warning here - I've seen Doctors recommend either cortisone or Hyaluronic acid injections (Synvisc) for Runners Knee. Cortisone softens and increases cartilage damage. In my experience, Hyaluronic acid injections are ineffective treatment for common Runner's Knee pain. Also, knee arthroscopy and micro-fracture surgery has been a big failure in studies and in clinical experience. The author had one and it was not good. DO NOT GET MICRO-FRACTURE SURGERY.
Hopefully, the above information will help you find the answer to your Runners Knee.
