Prevalence of pain on palpation of the inferior pole of the patella among patients with complaints of knee pain

• Main Authors: Leonardo Addêo Ramos, Rogério Teixeira de Carvalho, Emerson Garms, Marcelo Schmith Navarro, Rene Jorge Abdalla, Moisés Cohen
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Faculdade de Medicina / USP 2009-03-01
• Series: Clinics
• Subjects: Patellar; Tendinopathy; Physical examination; Clinical test; Athletes
• Online Access: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1807-59322009000300009

CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVE: Patellar tendinopathy is a common condition in sports. It may occur at any location of the patellar tendon, but the most commonly affected area is the inferior pole of the patella. Among various diagnostic tests, the one most used is palpation of the inferior pole of the patella. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of pain complaints among individuals with pathological knee conditions and to evaluate palpation of the inferior pole of the patella as a diagnostic test for patellar tendinopathy. METHODS: Palpation of the patellar tendon was performed on 318 individuals who presented with knee-related complaints. Palpation was performed with the individual in the supine position and the knee extended. The age, gender, physical activity and labor activity of each individual were recorded at the time the symptoms appeared; the diagnosis was also recorded. RESULTS: Of the total number of individuals evaluated, 124 (39%) felt pain on palpation of the inferior pole of the patella. Of these, only 40 (32.3%) received a diagnosis of patellar tendinopathy. We did not observe any difference with respect to gender and age distribution. When evaluating daily physical activity levels, however, we observed that individuals with pain on palpation of the inferior pole of the patella experienced more intense physical activity. CONCLUSIONS: Palpation of the inferior pole of the patella is a diagnostic procedure with high sensitivity and moderate specificity for diagnosing patellar tendinopathy, especially among individuals who perform activities with high functional demands.