TY - JOUR T1 - Evidence based journal watch JF - British Journal of Sports Medicine JO - Br J Sports Med SP - 563 LP - 564 VL - 40 IS - 6 AU - Martin P Schwellnus Y1 - 2006/06/01 UR - http://bjsm.bmj.com/content/40/6/563.abstract N2 - Lun VMY, Wiley JP, Meeuwisse WH, et al. Clin J Sport Med 2005;15:235–40OpenUrlCrossRefPubMed Background: Patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS), a common clinical problem in sports medicine, is usually treated non-operatively with an exercise rehabilitation programme—the use of adjunctive bracing has not been well established. Research question/s: How effective is patellar bracing in reducing pain and increasing function compared with a home exercise rehabilitation programme in the treatment of PFPS? Methodology:Subjects: 129 patients with PFPS subjects (male = 57, female = 79) (total of 197 affected knees). Experimental procedure: Once included in the study, baseline assessments were performed on all subjects including knee function and pain ratings (VAS 0–10) for three situations: knee pain during sport activity (VAS-Sport), knee pain 1 hr after sport activity (VAS-Sport 1hr), and knee pain after sitting with knees bent for 30 min (VAS-Sit). Subjects were randomly assigned to one of four treatment groups: (1) home exercise programme (Ex = 34), (2) patellar bracing (Brace = 32), (3) home exercise programme with patellar bracing (Ex+brace = 32), and (4) home exercise programme with knee sleeve (Ex+sleeve = 31). Measurements were repeated at 3, 6, and 12 wks. Measures of outcome: Pain (VAS), knee function (Werner knee function score). Main finding/s:: Pain: There was a significant reduction in pain in all groups over 12 weeks but no difference between groups. Knee function: There was … ER -