Solve Lateral Knee Pain

Lateral Knee Pain:

So, we’ve covered the typical treatments that don’t work. We’ve also reviewed the anatomy of the Proximal Tibiofibular joint. We have also discussed the primary function of the Proximal Tibiofibular joint. In addition to that, we have gone over the cause of the problem. Now is the time for the best part:

How do we fix it?

Since everything starts at the foot and moves up, let’s start there.

The Foot

We have talked about the fact that the foot is very involved with this entire chain of events and discussed how over pronation (or any pronation for that matter) is a major factor in Lateral Knee pain, so that is the easiest place to start with treatment. It is also the biggest bang for your buck.

Making or prescribing orthotics is usually the easiest way to control the Proximal Tibiofibular joint. Since we know that if that joint is lax, every time the foot pronates the fibula moves vertically and causes pain. It is easy to deduct that if we control any pronation, we can prevent the vertical displacement of the fibula, and ultimately end the pain and irritation.

At MTS, we recommend that you use a full length, relatively rigid orthotic. This can be either custom made, or over-the-counter. Just make sure it matches their arch well, so it doesn’t create blisters; and it controls the midfoot to prevent any pronation of the foot during gait. We also recommend using a 4 degree varus rearfoot wedge to further control the Talus. There are a lot of things going on with the forefoot, so we are not going to address who should and should not get any kind of forefoot posting in this discussion.

We have found that if you go too soft with an orthotic (usually found in shoe stores and drug stores) they may feel good on the feet, but don’t supply the adequate foot control needed. On the flip side, if you simply use a rigid plastic insert, many athletes don’t tolerate them well because they are just too hard. We prefer to use a hard shell with a neoprene padding over top to give a nice blend of both.

What About Therapy?

We rarely recommend using an orthosis alone without any training or therapy and this situation is no different. We want the athlete to use the orthotic to assist their foot, but we don’t want them to rely solely on it create their foot stability for them.

We recommend performing a number of squatting, lunging and other functional movements barefoot as part of their therapy. During this time, work hard with them to understand how to naturally support their foot and create their own structure and stability. Teach them how to “root” their feet and toes into the ground to provide feedback to the rest of the body.

We also want to address any issues at the hip, as discussed here. This issue usually comes in the form of tight hip flexors and an unstable core. Once those 2 areas are fixed, good foot mechanics will be much easier for your athlete to achieve.

Learn more about how Lateral Knee Pain:

Typical Treatment

Proximal Tibiofibular Joint

Cause of Lateral Knee Pain