Moviegoers Knee

Just came from a movie with my husband.  A great rainy day pass time.  As we were coming out of the theater, someone behind me was saying how her knee hurts after sitting through the movie.  I said to my husband, "she has moviegoers knee."  He kinda laughed, but it is a real problem. The technical term is patellofemoral pain syndrome, but moviegoers knee is much easier to say! I then said, "I can fix that. Wish I could turn around and give her a card, but that would be weird." So, I'm going to blog about it, so that others know and can pass it along. 

Definition: Moviegoers knee, or patellofemoral pain syndrome, describes general pain at the front of the knee which comes on gradually with symptoms increasing over a period of time. The patella does not move or 'track' in a correct fashion when the knee is being bent and straightened. This can lead to damage to the cartilage on the underside of the patella resulting in inflammation and pain.


Symptoms include: aching in the knee joint particularly in the front, swelling, pain with movement after inactivity, pain worse with walking hills or stairs, clicking or cracking when bending the knee, prolonged sitting can become uncomfortable, weakness in the quadriceps and tightness in calf, quadriceps, hamstrings and iliotibial band.  

Causes: Syndrome usually occurs over time with improper exercise, stretching and balance. Typically the muscles on the outer part of the leg (lateral aspect of quadriceps, iliotibial band and lateral retinaculum) become stiff, short and over strengthened and the muscles on the inner part of the leg (vastus medialus of quadriceps and part of the adductors) become weakened. The muscled on the outer part of the leg will then have a greater pull on the patella and the patella starts to track more to the outside. Overtime, this will become painful.

Treatment options: It is important to first seek out a sports medical professional to evaluate your condition.  If the diagnosis is in fact patellofemoral pain syndrome, the following will most likely per prescribed.  Usually an anti-inflammatory, rest, ice and physical therapy. A physical therapist will evaluate your posture, strength, flexibility and gait pattern to determine where you are out of balance. Using specific exercises designed for your needs, your physical therapist will set you up with a program to correct your muscle imbalance and alignment and provide shoe inserts if needed. Surgery is only an options for extreme or chronic cases.

For more info about this and other joint pain problems, please feel free to contact us!