Efficacy of isokinetic exercise on functional capacity and pain in patellofemoral pain syndrome

Objective: To assess the effect of an isokinetic exercise program on symptoms and functions of patients with patellofemoral pain syndrome. Design: A total of 22 consecutive patients with the complaint of anterior knee pain who met the inclusion criteria were recruited to assess the efficacy of isokinetic exercise on functional capacity, isokinetic parameters, and pain scores in patients with patellofemoral pain syndrome. A total of 37 knees were examined. Six-meter hopping, three-step hopping, and single-limb hopping course tests were performed for each patient with the measurements of the Lysholm scale and visual analog scale. Tested parameters were peak torque, total work, average power, and endurance ratios. Results: Statistical analyses revealed that at the end of the 6-wk treatment period, functional and isokinetic parameters improved significantly, as did pain scores. There was not statistically significant correlation between different groups of parameters. Conclusion: The isokinetic exercise treatment program used in this study prevented the extensor power loss due to patellofemoral pain syndrome, but the improvement in the functional capacity was not correlated with the gained power.