Core and Hip-Knee Exercises in PFPS (DKV)

April 12, 2026 updated by: Radwa Mohamed Hussien, Cairo University

EFFECT OF CORE STABILITY EXERCISES AND KNEE, HIP FOCUSED EXERSISES ON DYNAMIC KNEE VALGUS IN PATELLOFEMORAL PAIN SYNDROME

Study Purpose:

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of adding core muscle strengthening exercises to a hip- and knee-focused exercise program on pain intensity, dynamic knee valgus (DKV), and functional outcomes in female patients with patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS).

Research Question:

Does adding core muscle strengthening exercises to a hip- and knee-focused exercise program have an effect on pain intensity, dynamic knee valgus (DKV), and functional outcomes in female patients with PFPS?

Study Overview

Status

Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Detailed Description:

Therefore, the current study aims to investigate the effect of adding core muscle strengthening exercises to a hip- and knee-focused exercise program on pain intensity, dynamic knee valgus (DKV), and functional outcomes in female patients with patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS).

The findings of this study may provide a more effective rehabilitation program for female patients with PFPS, support the use of validated outcome measures in clinical practice, and improve symptom management during activities of daily living and functional recovery within a shorter period of time. This combined approach may be more efficient than the conventional hip- and knee-focused exercise program alone. Systematic assessment and monitoring of patient outcomes are recommended to guide clinical decision-making.

Study Delimitations:

This study will be delimited to:

Female patients clinically diagnosed with patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS). Thirty-six participants aged 19-35 years with body mass index (BMI) up to 25 kg/m².

Assessment procedures including Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for knee pain, dynamic knee valgus (DKV) measured using Kinovea software, and the Knee Outcome Survey-Activities of Daily Living Scale (KOS-ADLS) for knee function.

Treatment procedures:

Group A (control group): hip- and knee-focused exercise program. Group B (study group): hip- and knee-focused exercise program in addition to core muscle stability exercises.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

36

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

  • Egypt
    • Giza Governorate
      • Giza, Giza Governorate, Egypt, 12613
        • Cairo University - Faculty of Physical Therapy
        • Contact:
        • Contact:
        • Principal Investigator:
          • Radwa M Hussien, Pt, PhD

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Child

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. Thirty-six female participants diagnosed and referred with patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS) (retropatellar knee pain lasting more than 6 weeks).
  2. Age range between 19-35 years.
  3. Body Mass Index (BMI) up to 25 kg/m².

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. History of previous surgeries of the lower limb.
  2. Clinical evidence of knee joint complex disorders, including meniscus lesions, 3-patellar tendinopathy, chondral lesions, or knee osteoarthritis.

4-Presence of pronated foot.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Double

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: control group hip and knee focused exercises program

Open kinetic chain exercises including side-lying hip abduction, hip external rotation (clamshell), prone hip extension, short arc quadriceps, and straight leg raises

  1. Closed kinetic chain exercises including mini wall squats and terminal knee extensions
  2. Flexibility exercises targeting tight lower extremity soft tissues, including a seated hamstring stretch, standing quadriceps stretch, and standing wall stretch for the gastrocnemius
Behavioral: hip and knee-focused exercise program

Open kinetic chain exercises including side-lying hip abduction, hip external rotation (clamshell), prone hip extension, short arc quadriceps, and straight leg raises (Khayambashi et al., 2012) ( Dolak et al., 2011).

  1. Closed kinetic chain exercises including mini wall squats and terminal knee extensions (Hott et al., 2020).
  2. Flexibility exercises targeting tight lower extremity soft tissues, including a seated hamstring stretch, standing quadriceps stretch, and standing wall stretch for the gastrocnemius
Experimental: Study group hip and knee focused exercises program in addition to core muscle training exercises
participants who will received the same exercise program as control group, in addition to core muscle training exercises, including the front plank, side plank, and dead bug exercises
Behavioral: Core Muscle Stability Exercise Program
core muscle training exercises, including the front plank, side plank, and dead bug exercises

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Pain Intensity During Motion
Time Frame: Baseline (pre-intervention) and at 6 weeks (post-intervention)
Pain intensity during movement will be assessed using the Visual Analog Scale (VAS). The VAS is a 10-cm scale ranging from 0 (no pain) to 10 (worst imaginable pain). Higher scores indicate greater pain intensity.
Baseline (pre-intervention) and at 6 weeks (post-intervention)
Knee Function
Time Frame: Baseline (pre-intervention) and at 6 weeks (post-intervention)
Knee function will be assessed using the Knee Outcome Survey (KOS). The KOS score ranges from 0 to 100, where higher scores indicate better knee function.
Baseline (pre-intervention) and at 6 weeks (post-intervention)
Pain Intensity at Rest
Time Frame: Baseline (pre-intervention) and at 6 weeks (post-intervention)
Pain intensity at rest will be assessed using the Visual Analog Scale (VAS). The VAS is a 10-cm scale ranging from 0 (no pain) to 10 (worst imaginable pain). Higher scores indicate greater pain intensity.
Baseline (pre-intervention) and at 6 weeks (post-intervention)
Dynamic Knee Valgus (DKV)
Time Frame: Baseline (pre-intervention) and at 6 weeks (post-intervention)
Dynamic knee valgus will be assessed by measuring the knee valgus angle in degrees during functional tasks. Higher values indicate greater valgus deviation and poorer knee alignment.
Baseline (pre-intervention) and at 6 weeks (post-intervention)

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Cairo University

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Radwa M Hussien, Pt, PhD, Cairo University - Faculty of Physical Therapy

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Estimated)

May 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

November 4, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

December 4, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

March 29, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

April 12, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

April 15, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

April 15, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

April 12, 2026

Last Verified

May 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • P.T. REC/012/006181

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

There is no plan to share individual participant data (IPD) from this study. All collected data will remain confidential and will not be made publicly available in order to protect participant privacy and comply with ethical regulations.

Access Criteria:

Not applicable, as individual participant data will not be shared.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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