The most common description of knee pain is a condition called Patello-Femoral Syndrome. It is pain that is occurring between the knee cap and thigh bone. This causes pain in the front of the knee and sometimes a grinding or crunching sensation. Knee pain is usually caused by wear and tear stemming from age and over-use. Over time the cartilage under the knee cap will soften and result in tissue breakdown leading to pain in the knee joint.

Can custom orthotics help alleviate knee pain? The answer is yes. Custom orthotics can significantly reduce or even eliminate knee pain by changing foot biomechanics and correcting misalignment. How do wearing custom orthotics achieve this? They are worn on the feet?

Custom orthotics help knee pain in the following ways:

-The material custom orthotics are made of absorbs excess shock and reduces stress on the foot and ankle during movement. Custom orthotics also changes how stress is distributed in your foot which can change the force put on the knee

-custom orthotics can compensate for biomechanics or structural deficiencies in your ankles or feet which create abnormal movement patterns. By limiting the motion, custom orthotics can reduce the wear on joints.

-custom orthotics can also change the alignment of your knees by controlling pronation and supination of the foot. Excessive pronation or supination can cause the lower leg and knee to rotate abnormally inwards or outwards. Over-pronation is very common and affects an estimated 70% of the population. Those who over-pronate also can experience frequent ankle sprains, shin splints, hip pain, pain in arches, leg pains and lower back pain.

If you are experiencing knee pain and would like to be fitted for custom orthotics, please contact our office for an appointment.