Doctors Chris Kessler and Tom Campbell of Victory Rehab Chiropractic explain the most effective ways to prevent the troubling symptoms of runner’s knee for an injury-free race season.
NAPERVILLE, Ill., April 24, 2022 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — As local runners gear up for an exciting spring season of events, Doctors Chris Kessler and Tom Campbell of Victory Rehab Chiropractic are inspired to share advice on preventing pain and injury. The sports-specific chiropractors are athletes themselves. They advise that the most frequent musculoskeletal complaint among runners is called patellar tracking disorder, or patello-femoral syndrome.
More commonly known as runner’s knee, this repetitive stress injury is often caused by inflammation under and around the patellar tendon and soft tissue of the knee. It generally occurs when there’s an imbalance, weakness, or tightness in the quadriceps muscles above the knee.
Symptoms of runner’s knee include:
- Pain under or around the kneecap, especially while running or walking downhill
- Clicking, rubbing, or grinding sounds when bending or straightening the knee
- A feeling of weakness or instability in the knee
- A kneecap that’s tender to the touch
“In a perfect world, your knee cap should track nice and neatly between two bony groves when you flex your legs,” explains Dr. Chris. “However, if you have over-or under-trained certain muscle groups above the knee—something we runners are notorious for—then your patella will start to pull to one side or the other.”
While runner’s knee rarely leads to more serious problems, the condition may become persistent and increasingly painful over time, even affecting normal daily activities. Runners diagnosed with the condition are often advised to stop running until they can run again without pain. “Runners are a different breed, and shutting down running to allow for healing is just not an option for most,” says Dr. Tom. “One of the best ways we deal with runner’s knee at our Naperville chiropractic…
