Neil,
I am a 38 year old female, I have been running on and off since I was 20. I was recently training for the Disney Marathon, and on my last 10 mile taper run, i felt pain on the side of my knee. I attempted the marathon, made it 17 miles, and couldn't walk. My ortho told me I had severe inflammation at my fibular head that sometimes affected my peronial nerve. She gave me cortizone, but i had no relief. She said that it's a hard place to heal, and it might be 6 months before I ran again with no pain. Do you have any suggestions? Please help! I am desperate!
Hi Suzanne, It is not terribly uncommon to get lateral knee pain. Several structures insert there including the Iliotibial Band and the Lateral Hamstring. The real question I have is why this occurred. That question needs to be answered in order to help you recover. The first suggestion I have is for you to be evaluated by a therapist or chiropractor who understands the SI joint (Sacro-Iliac). I have seen several runners where the only issue was an SI joint antetorsion (which places additional tension on the posterior structures)and a single manipulation completely resolved the problem(see the review from Julie K. on yelp at http://www.yelp.com) That is the short term solution. Beyond that, you need to be examined for orthotics in the event that this is a mechanical problem, and you should also go through a more thorough musculoskeletal evaluation to determine what, if any, mobility or stability restriction you have. Whatever else you do, you should ice your knee like crazy (ice and water in a plastic bag directly on the skin for at least 10 minutes). Good Luck
Neil
