Anterior Knee Pain
“Pain under the kneecap, also known as anterior knee pain is one of the most common reasons why active people seek healthcare.”1 Anterior knee pain can be debilitating, causing people to experience an inability to continue normal levels of physical activity and function. In fact, “74% of people with this problem will decrease their overall physical activity levels for at least 5 years after the initial injury, and 70% to 90% of them will experience more than 1 episode of pain."1 Anterior knee pain may be the result of any one of a myriad of underlying pathologies. “The pain may be a nagging ache or an occasional sharp pain that may cause you to limp or to limit your activities. This pain is also typically most pronounced when performing such activities as going up and down stairs, squatting, running, or after sitting for a long period of time.”2 In order to accurately treat anterior knee pain, it is important for the clinician to understand the underlying differential diagnoses that may contributing to the patients signs and symptoms of anterior knee pain.