Why are you feeling pain from your hip to your knee and how can physical therapy help you?

If you’ve been experiencing pain from your hip to your knee, there could be several causes. The most common cause of this type of pain that runs along the outside of your leg is IT band syndrome. 

The IT band (iliotibial band) is a long stretch of tissue that connects from your pelvis to your shinbone, and runs along the outside of your knee joint. When this band becomes damaged, pain can radiate from your hip to your knee and along the outside of the thigh. In some cases, it can be felt from your knee to your shin, or all the way from your hip to your shin in more severe cases. 

One way to determine if your IT band is the cause of the pain from your hip to your knee is to see if you have any of these additional symptoms that are common with damage to the IT band:

• Difficulty walking.
• Changes in gait (the way you walk).
• Decreased flexibility. 

If you are experiencing these symptoms for longer than two weeks, you should schedule an appointment to see a physical therapist. 

How can physical therapy help treat the pain from your hip to your knee?

While there are some at-home stretches you can do to help prevent an IT band injury, there isn’t much you can do at home to heal an injury except for rest. When rest isn’t enough, it’s important to see a physical therapist to get to the root cause of your issue. Pain that extends from the hip to the knee can impact your daily life, so you’ll want to get it treated as quickly as possible. 

Some of the most common physical therapy treatments for IT band pain include:

• Manual therapy — Guided stretches and exercises help heal the damaged tissue and reduce pressure on the nerves in the hip and knee.

• Cupping — This will help increase blood flow to the damaged tissue to help it heal faster.
• IASTM — Instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization will help restore connective tissue that has been damaged or overstretched.

If you’ve been suffering from pain that extends from your hip to your knee, it’s time to find treatment and return to your normal quality of life. Armor Physical Therapy can help you get there. Schedule a free consultation today to learn more about our personalized physical therapy treatment plans, and begin your journey toward healing today.