RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Clinical application of foot strike run retraining for military service members with chronic knee pain
JF BMJ Military Health
JO BMJ Mil Health
FD British Medical Journal Publishing Group
SP 303
OP 307
DO 10.1136/bmjmilitary-2021-001789
VO 168
IS 4
A1 Brittney Mazzone
A1 A Yoder
A1 R Condon
A1 S Farrokhi
YR 2022
UL http://militaryhealth.bmj.com/content/168/4/303.abstract
AB Introduction Military training is associated with a high incidence of knee pain. Conversion from a rearfoot to non-rearfoot strike during running is effective at reducing knee pain in research environments. The purpose of this report was to demonstrate run retraining as a clinical intervention for service members with knee pain.Methods Sixteen service members with running-related chronic knee pain underwent run retraining that converted foot strike from a rearfoot to a non-rearfoot strike using real-time visual feedback. The Lower Extremity Functional Scale (LEFS) and Numerical Pain Rating Scale (NPRS) for knee pain during running were assessed pretraining, at the final training session and at a 1-month follow-up. During running, foot inclination angle and vertical ground reaction force (VGRF) average loading rate were measured pretraining and at 1 month of follow-up.Results Service members underwent 7.4±1.0 training sessions over the course of 15.8±4.6 days. LEFS improved by 8±6 points immediately after retraining, with an overall improvement of 10±6 points from pretraining to 1-month follow-up (p<0.01). NPRS improved by 2.0±0.4 points immediately after retraining, with an overall improvement of 2.0±0.4 points from pretraining to 1-month follow-up (p<0.01). Conversion to a non-rearfoot strike pattern was apparent at follow-up for all but two patients. VGRF average loading rate decreased by 56%±17% (p<0.01) from pretraining to 1-month follow-up.Conclusions Knee pain and function improved as a result of non-rearfoot strike run retraining, which supports the clinical use of this evidence-based intervention.Data are available upon reasonable request from the corresponding author.