Knee Pain, A Few Things To Ask
Let’s talk about patellofemoral syndrome. This is one of the common issues I see at Advanced Physical Therapy Specialists. It’s an issue that can cause pain along the front of your knee, often surrounding or underneath your knee cap. There are lots of things that can cause pain in the knee; this is just one of the more common issues I run into. Your knee cap is getting pulled just a little too far to the outside part of your leg, which causes increased stress around your knee cap.
The nice thing is that this is often times very treatable. So let me tell you what you want your healthcare provider to be looking at, or at least considering. These are usually things that will get overlooked.
First Thing To Ask About
First thing: Pelvic Alignment. If your pelvis is tipped and rotated, even a little bit, your hip muscles won’t be able to fire as efficiently as you want them to. This means you can be strengthening the snot out of your glute muscles, and still have an issue with knee pain. 
The majority of these issues will have a pelvic component. So you want your provider to start out with exercises that not only get your pelvis in a good position, but that will keep it that way. Then it’s ok to work on glute and hip strength.
Second Thing To Ask About
The second thing to look for is how your femur (or thigh bone) and tibia (shin bone) are rotated. There can be a few combinations here, but if you get that pelvis in a good position, the femur rotation will often be on a good path. Your femur can be rotated slightly inwards or outward facing. Same goes for your tibia, it can be rotated slightly in or out. If this rotation is left unchecked it can continue to contribute to excess strain on and around your knee cap.
Third Thing To Ask About
Last thing to look at is the mechanics of the foot, specifically the mobility of the subtalar joint. 
This joint can be overlooked and if it is stiff will keep the foot locked up, and if the foot is locked up…you guessed it, increased strain on the knee.
Next Steps…
This post is a little on the technical side, but if you have any questions about what can be done for your knee pain, shoot me an email at jeremy@advancedpts.com or give me a call at 305-433-1172.
Advanced Physical Therapy Specialists offers comprehensive Orthopedic Rehabilitation physical therapy which concentrates on the individual. We apply manual therapeutic techniques to examine and treat neuro-musculoskeletal conditions of the spine and extremities. We take Orthopedic Rehabilitation seriously. I am a Board Certified Orthopedic Clinical Specialist and is a Fellow in the American Academy of Orthopedic Manual Physical Therapists.
Now that you are prepared with the right questions, the next step is to try a Free Discovery Visit to learn the answers specific to your knee problem.