NCT06893289

Brief Summary

Patellofemoral Pain (PFP) is one of the most common causes of knee pain and is significantly present in recreational athletes who have previously been categorized as being in a subgroup of PFP. Understanding which intervention is most appropriate for this subgroup could give us important information about subgroup-based treatments, which are not yet described in the literature. Therefore, the aim of this study is to analyze the effect of two exercise interventions in a PFP subgroup: one focusing on neuromuscular control exercises and the other focusing on muscle strengthening.This study will recruit 10 individuals to each exercise group, and will assess pain, function, muscle activity and joint kinematics pre and post intervention. Mixed Model ANOVA tests will be used to determine the responses to the two interventions between the two groups over a 6-week treatment time.

Trial Health

43
At Risk

Trial Health Score

Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach

Trial has exceeded expected completion date
Enrollment
20

participants targeted

Target at below P25 for not_applicable

Timeline
Completed

Started May 2025

Shorter than P25 for not_applicable

Geographic Reach
1 country

1 active site

Status
not yet recruiting

Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.

Trial Relationships

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Study Timeline

Key milestones and dates

First Submitted

Initial submission to the registry

March 10, 2025

Completed
15 days until next milestone

First Posted

Study publicly available on registry

March 25, 2025

Completed
1 month until next milestone

Study Start

First participant enrolled

May 1, 2025

Completed
3 months until next milestone

Primary Completion

Last participant's last visit for primary outcome

August 1, 2025

Completed
Same day until next milestone

Study Completion

Last participant's last visit for all outcomes

August 1, 2025

Completed
Last Updated

March 25, 2025

Status Verified

March 1, 2025

Enrollment Period

3 months

First QC Date

March 10, 2025

Last Update Submit

March 17, 2025

Conditions

Patellofemoral Pain

Keywords

Patellofemoral painElectromyographyKinematicsKineticsNeuromuscular controlPFP subgroups

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (3)

  • Pain at rest

    Numerical Pain Rating Scale (NPRS)

    From enrollment to the end of treatment at 6 weeks

  • Pain during activity

    Numerical Pain Rating Scale (NPRS)

    From enrollment to the end of treatment at 6 weeks

  • Function

    Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score - KOOS

    From enrollment to the end of treatment at 6 weeks

Secondary Outcomes (3)

  • Kinematic data - hip, knee and ankle angles

    From enrollment to the end of treatment at 6 weeks

  • Kinetic data - hip, knee, and ankle moments and ground reaction forces

    From enrollment to the end of treatment at 6 weeks

  • Muscular activity

    From enrollment to the end of treatment at 6 weeks

Study Arms (2)

Neuromuscular control exercises

EXPERIMENTAL
Other: Exercise

Muscle strengthening

ACTIVE COMPARATOR
Other: Muscle strengthening

Interventions

ExerciseOTHER

Balance and proprioceptive exercises

Neuromuscular control exercises
Muscle strengtheningOTHER

Strengthening of the lower limb muscles

Muscle strengthening

Eligibility Criteria

Age18 Years - 40 Years
Sexall
Healthy VolunteersNo
Age GroupsAdult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

  • Anterior or retropatellar pain reported on at least two of the following activities: prolonged sitting, ascending or descending stairs, running, kneeling and hopping/jumping.
  • At least two of the three following clinical examination findings:
  • Pain during resisted isometric quadriceps contraction
  • Pain with palpation of the posterior borders of the patella
  • Pain during squatting Classified as a subgroup of PFP.

Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.

Sponsors & Collaborators

Study Sites (1)

Faculty of Sport of University of Porto

Porto, 4200-450, Portugal

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome

Interventions

Exercise

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Joint DiseasesMusculoskeletal Diseases

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Motor ActivityMovementMusculoskeletal Physiological PhenomenaMusculoskeletal and Neural Physiological Phenomena

Central Study Contacts

Ana Luiza Costa e Silva Cabral, Master in Physiotherapy

CONTACT

+351934718655analuizacsc@gmail.com

João Paulo Vilas-Boas, Full professor

CONTACT

Study Design

Study Type
interventional
Phase
not applicable
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Masking
SINGLE
Who Masked
PARTICIPANT
Masking Details
Patients will be blinded to group allocation, ensuring that they will not know which exercises will be performed by the other group, and thus the interventions will be administered separately to members of each treatment group.
Purpose
TREATMENT
Intervention Model
PARALLEL
Sponsor Type
OTHER
Responsible Party
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
PI Title
PhD candidate

Study Record Dates

First Submitted

March 10, 2025

First Posted

March 25, 2025

Study Start

May 1, 2025

Primary Completion

August 1, 2025

Study Completion

August 1, 2025

Last Updated

March 25, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-03

Data Sharing

IPD Sharing
Will not share

Locations

PT(1)