
Most popular approaches - like stretching - have major problems. Another common point of confusion: contrary to popular belief, ITBS is not a hip or thigh problem - that’s something else (more below).Īlthough IT band syndrome is common, there are no clearly effective treatments for it, just a mess of options ranging from imperfect to completely bogus. Pain on the side of the knee is notably different from the other common kind of runner’s knee, patellofemoral pain, which causes pain on the front of the knee and often gets mixed up with ITBS. The injury mainly plagues runners, but a few unlucky cyclists and hapless hikers will get it too, and it may even be common in inactive people in the aftermath of a knee surgery or other unknown causes of vulnerability. Iliotibial band syndrome (ITBS) - also misleadingly known as iliotibial band friction syndrome - is a common 1 repetitive strain injury that causes pain mainly on the side of the knee, especially when descending stairs and hills.
