Written by Nathalie, PT.

Jumper’s knee is also known as patellar or quadriceps tendinopathy. The quadriceps group consists of four muscles at the front of your thigh. They come together to form a tendon around the kneecap that continues to attach to the shinbone. This muscle group straightens the knee and helps bend the hip.

Symptoms of Jumper’s Knee

Jumper’s knee is characterized by an initial inflammatory response followed by degeneration. Pain often develops gradually during training. Early symptoms may include pain at the front of the knee, swelling and reduced function. When the condition becomes chronic, people may experience persistent knee pain and quadriceps muscle wasting. Activities that trigger pain include jumping, running and quick changes of direction. As symptoms worsen, you may also notice difficulty with climbing stairs, walking, moving from standing to sitting or sitting for long periods.

Causes of Jumper’s Knee

• Jumper’s knee is very common in sports that involve repeated jumping, such as basketball and volleyball. Factors that may contribute to this tendinopathy include:
• Extrinsic factors: changes in equipment or training surfaces; sport-specific activities such as acceleration, deceleration and cutting; and increases in training volume without appropriate progression of tissue loading.

Intrinsic factors: joint range of motion, postural alignment, strength and flexibility.

How Can a Physiotherapist Help?

A physiotherapist can provide:

• A detailed assessment to identify factors that may be contributing to your pain
• Activity modifications or recommendations to temporarily stop certain activities
• Exercises to help correct postural or muscle imbalances
• An exercise program that progressively loads your tendon
• Manual therapy
• Sports taping
• Education on self-management and preventing future recurrences

If you have knee pain, contact us! Our qualified physiotherapists are here to help!

Call us for a physiotherapy appointment or book online!

References:
Rudavsky, A., & Cook, J. (2014). Physiotherapy management of patellar tendinopathy (Jumper’s knee). Journal of Physiotherapy, 60(3), 122–129. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jphys.2014.06.022
Rudavsky, A., & Cook, J. (2014). Physiotherapy management of patellar tendinopathy (Jumper’s knee). Journal of Physiotherapy, 60(3), 122–129. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jphys.2014.06.022
Brukner, P., & Khan, K. (2017). Brukner & Khan’s clinical sports medicine. McGraw-Hill Education (Australia) Pty Ltd.