There is nothing worse than stating to come into your own as an athlete, and then all sudden you start to get jumper’s knee. That tender spot right under your kneecap can hurt a lot when you jump or put pressure on your knee. A lot of people get Jumper’s knee relief from using a jumper’s knee strap, but there are more effective ways to deal with the injury. There are a lot of things you can do on your own as an athlete as well as seeking professional help.
What is Jumper’s Knee?
Jumper’s knee is a repetitive use injury from putting constant strain on the quads and the knee, and it is commonly found in jumping athletes from sports like:
- Basketball
- Volleyball
- High Jump
- Long Jump
- Triple Jump
Jumper’s knee is a huge pain in the butt because it usually is not painful enough in the beginning to require rest or to remove you from training or games. That is the problem with chronic injuries though; they creep up on you over time. In the sports listed above you keep jumping more and more, the quads get tighter and put more pressure on the patellar tendon and the knee, and they pull the kneecap higher and higher.
Causes of Jumper’s Knee
- Playing and jumping on harder surfaces
- Overtraining
- Higher body weight
- Bowlegged athletes
- Knock-kneed athletes
- Abnormally high or low kneecaps
- Poor quad flexibility
- Jumping and landing technique and ability
The causes vary greatly, and not all of these things can be fixed so sometimes the injury is one you have to learn to manage. We will get into some of the best treatment options like the jumper’s knee strap in a bit.
Is Jumper’s Knee From Growing Pains?
Many time jumper’s knee and Osgood Schlatter can be confused because they are very similar in many cases. Both of them cause knee pain under the kneecap. Osgood Schlatter tends to affect adolescents that are still growing. If you are not an adult yet and are still having growth spurts than you may be dealing with some different than Jumper’s knee. There is good news though, and that good news is the fact that Osgood Schlatter and Jumper’s Knee can be treated in very similar ways. A lot of people use a jumper’s knee strap for both injuries.
The significant difference in treating Osgood Schlatter is that it is a growing pain and humans can do very little to change growth patterns. They happen when they want to and stop when they are ready. That is just part of being a growing kid.
How to Prevent Jumper’s Knee
The best form of treatment is prevention. Why figure out how to come back from an injury when you can avoid it all together?
Quad and Hamstring Stretches to Help Jumper’s Knee
It is important to remember that the quads, hamstrings, and calves are the primary muscles that surround the knee joint. If these muscles are tight or having issues, they are going to effect how the joint functions. The quad is the primary muscle used in jumping, and if it is always under stress, it eventually gets tight. When the quad is tight, it pulls the knee cap up and puts more train on the patellar knee tendon.
Should You Use the Jumper’s Knee Strap?
When it comes to using the jumper’s knee strap, there is two side to the same coin. To make a long story short, you should use it, but you should not depend on it. The jumper’s knee strap is just a band-aid, but it does not fix the problem. If you put a band-aid on a cut that needs stitches the band-aid will prove itself even less useful.
Working on foam rolling and stretch your quads will do way more for you than just wearing the jumper’s knee strap. The reason it is worth wearing is that it will provide some immediate relief. When you use multiple treatment forms together that is how you get the best success.
Other Treatment Options Outside of The Jumper’s Knee Strap
The best place to start this journey is by finding a sports medicine healthcare provider in your area to work with you. The reason for this is because they will help you locate what the exact problem is and then figure out the best plan of action to return to health. Too many athletes try and do this on their own, and they make mistakes that cost them their season. If you want to be health as possible you want to for a sports medicine provider like the following:
- Chiropractors
- Massage Therapists
- Physical Therapists
- Acupuncturists
- Naturopathic Doctors
- Registered Dieticians
The great healthcare providers never stop learning! They go to school, and after school, they continue doing education courses and getting certification so they can acquire more sills. They also have life experiences like being a former athlete that they can use to serve you better. Many of the healthcare providers you want to see will have acquired skillsets like the following:
- Dry Needling
- Graston Technique
- Active Release Technique (ART)
- Fascial Stretching
- Functional Movement Screen (FMS)
- and many more
How to Find These Healthcare Providers to Treat Jumper’s Knee?
9INE POINT Health is the place that you start this journey. 9INE POINT Health is the only tool that lets you search for sports medicine providers based on a type of therapist as well as the skill so you can find the best local options for what you need. If you are not sure what you are looking for, the 9INE POINT Health mobile app will ask you a series of questions to help you figure out the best healthcare provider that you should see.
When you are deciding between the best options, you can always look to the 9INE POINT Number. The 9INE POINT Number is the easiest way to compare health care providers. It takes the key metrics that you need to know and combines them to create a number out of 100 that you can use to decide if you want to dig in deeper. Those three metrics include:
- Ratings and Reviews
- Engagement within 9INE POINT Health
- Insurances Accepted
KHO Health was acquired by was acquire by 9INE POINT in the summer of 2019 and is now referred to as 9INE POINT Health.
9INE POINT Health was created by 9INE POINT in '19 as a means to provide athlete-driven resources to "Protect Athletes' Minds, Body and Belly". As well as be a platform for healthcare providers and other specialists to display their knowledge.
