Ouch, My Knee!

In this first article in our new series on sports injuries, we look at a common affliction: pain in the knee. A sports medicine physician (who is also a sportswoman) takes us through the details of iliotibial band syndrome, a form of knee pain caused mainly by overuse.

- Dr Au Yong Pui San

Knee pain. The inevitable bane of all runners, cyclists, hikers and… well, just about everyone. All adults (and unfortunately some adolescents as well) will experience some degree of knee pain or discomfort at least once in their life. Even more unfortunately, many out there live with knee pain on a daily basis.

Knee pain – the symptom – can be due to many causes. Some are easier to “fix” than others. Some will haunt you to a certain degree for a long time. And some knee pains will force you to give up a sport that you are passionate about. Fortunately, all knee pains can be managed and, if adequate care is given early enough, be kept at bay for many years to come.

In this Sports Injury series, we will look into a few common types of knee pain. This time, we shall begin with Iliotibial Band Syndrome (more casually known as ITB syndrome or ITBS), its typical presentation and causes, common remedial therapies that can be done on your own and when you need to stop kidding yourself and get your knee pain checked by a medical professional.

WHAT IS THE ILIOTIBIAL BAND (ITB)?

ITB is a connective tissue (a mixture of both muscle and fascia) that starts at the side of the pelvis, runs along the lateral aspect of the thigh crossing both the hip joint and the knee joint, connects to other muscles and fascia then attaches to the bony edge of the side of the leg (tibia).

The ITB functions by stabilizing the knee and preventing it from caving in. Because of the proximity to the bony edges at the knee, it may start rubbing against the bony parts due to the repeated knee flexion (bending) and extension (straightening), thus becoming inflamed and painful.

WHAT ARE THE SIGNS OF ITBS?