Pain just below the kneecap
Symptoms: Pain just below the kneecap. If it’s severe enough, you might feel the pain all the time, but generally it hurts during or after playing sports such as basketball.
Diagnosis
Patellar tendinitis Also known as jumper’s knee, this is an overuse injury to the tendon that connects your patella, or kneecap, to your tibial tubercle, the bump on your lower-leg bone. It’s usually caused by sports that involve jumping, such as basketball and volleyball, but runners can get it, too. That part of the knee sees a lot of stress. Anytime you lift your leg (walking, jumping, raising it in the air), all of the weight of your leg goes to that point. The entire lower leg is held up by that one tendon.
Treatment
Rest your knee—the tendon needs time to heal. You really need to avoid the offending activity. Otherwise, it’s like having your foot on the gas and the brake at the same time. Treat it with ice and anti-inflammatories. Wearing a knee brace might also help because it takes tension off the tendon. While the injury is healing, switch to exercises that won’t irritate the tendon, such as swimming or very-light-resistance cycling, says Terry Malone, P.T., Ed.D., director of physical therapy at the University of Kentucky. You should also work on strengthening your quadriceps. Malone suggests this exercise: On a leg-press machine, push out with both legs (again, using light resistance). Then take your right leg off and slowly bring the weight back down with just your left leg. Switch legs. Do two sets of 10 to 12 repetitions three times a week.
