Patellofemoral pain syndrome: prevalence and coping strategies of amateur runners in Lagos state

Abstract

Patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS) is an overuse injury of the patellofemoral joint which is characterized by pain in the anterior aspect of the knee, aggravated by activities. However little is known about the prevalence and coping strategies of PFPS in amateur runners in Nigeria. This study therefore investigated the prevalence and coping strategies of patellofemoral pain syndrome among amateur runners in Lagos, south west, Nigeria.
Material and Method. A cross sectional survey was carried out among 203 amateur runners within the ages of 18-40 years recruited from various sports centers in Lagos state, south west, Nigeria. The instruments used for this research were a 32 item questionnaire of Survey instrument for Natural history, Etiology and Prevalence of Patellofemoral pain Studies (SNAPPS) and pain coping inventory (PCI).
Results. The 12month prevalence of PFPS was observed to be 45.3%. There was a high prevalence of PFPS among females 45(53.6%). It was also observed that the coping strategies adopted mostly by the respondents were passive coping strategy 65(70.70%). Sex was significantly associated with 12 months prevalence of PFPS.
Conclusion. There was a high prevalence of PFPS among amateur runners in Lagos state with females having a 1.35times higher prevalence than males. Passive coping strategies of worrying and resting were mostly adopted by the respondents.

Key words:

patellofemoral pain syndrome, prevalence, coping strategies, runners