Impairment based rehabilitation for patellofemoral pain patients

Patellofemoral pain is a common knee pathology that affects a wide range of active individuals. These individuals often seek medical care, with 25% of all patients seen in sports medicine clinics being treated for patellofemoral pain. While conservative treatment produce beneficial short-term results, individuals with patellofemoral pain often have long-term pain and decreased quality of life for many years following their diagnosis. One of the challenges for treating this chronic condition is the heterogeneous presentation of impairments across patients, ranging from soft tissue restriction, muscle weakness, altered movement patterns during functional tasks, and weak core stability. Clinicians need to identify these impairments and develop an individualized impairment-based model for treating patients with PFP. The aim of this review it to provide guidance and recommendations for clinicians who treat PFP in hopes to improve long-term outcomes for the conservative treatment of PFP.