What is a Patella Tendinopathy?
Patella Tendinopathy ( often called Jumpers Knee) is a common cause of knee pain both recreationally active people and athletes. This is particularly true for sports that involve repetitive side to side movements, quick stop starts and or rapid change of directions.
Who is it commonly seen in ?
It is commonly seen in younger athletes, both in children and adolescents and increases in prevalence with age up to the ages of 18 years. It is more common in male athletes by 2x – 4x when compared to their
female counterparts.
What does it look like?
Characteristics of patella tendinopathy include pain and discomfort localised to the inferior pole of the patella (below the knee cap). It is often aggravated with movements such as jumping, landing, cutting and pivoting – these are known as high energy storage and release movements. Surfaces and choice of footwear can impact the amount of shock absorption as harder surfaces increase the risk of patella tendinopathy
Treatment of Patella Tendinopathy
There are a variety of different treatment modalities that can be applied to assist the rehabilitation of this injury. Treatment will depend on what stage of the tendon continuum the injury is sitting on, the severity of pain, the current loading patterns / amount of activity is involved and what planned on your sporting/ recreational calendar.
Treatment Modalities consist of:
- Physiotherapist Guided Load Management / Activity Modification
- Manual therapy (soft tissue techniques)
- Western Acupuncture / Dry Needling
- Biomechanical Assessment and Strengthening of the Failing Kinetic Chains
- Graduated Exercise management / Tendon Loading Program
- Graduated return to sport
- In some cases combined Physiotherapy & PRP (Platelet rich Plasma Injections are assistive)
Prognosis
Majority of cases that are well managed and are in the settle well between 6-12 weeks pending the stage of tendinopathy along the continuum. These injuries may require continued management and vigilance depending on the athletic loads of the person but are often well self managed once the rehabilitation process has been engaged.
References
McKeon, J., Bush, H., Reed, A., Whittington, A., Uhl, T., & Mckeon, R., 2014 ‘Return-to-play probabilities following new versus recurrent ankle sprains in high school athletes’, Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, vol. 17, No. 1. View link.