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Does anyone have suggestions for how to help a correct an imbalance for patello-femoral pain. I sprained my MCL, completely tore my ACL, and tore meniscus 15 months ago. A clinic doctor told me there was nothing wrong with it initially, so I limped around (with no support) for about a month before finally seeing my doctor. He immediately scheduled an MRI and sent me to an orthopaedic doctor. Six weeks later I had reconstructive surgery. I progressed through the summer, though not as quickly as the average patient. Just after finishing round two of PT, I lost all quad strength and started having pain just doing simple things like using stairs. My doctor didn't take me seriously at first when I told him how I was regressing. A month later as the knee faltered more and more, he sent me back to PT. I was diagnosed with Patellar Femoral Pain Syndrome. I have been in therapy ever since. In February of this year, the doctor went back in and performed a lateral release, plica excision, and chondroplasty. It has been 3 months since surgery number 2, and I still can't do simple tasks - such as pick things up off the floor, sit for more than 15 minutes at a time, turn, etc. The knee used to be really uncomfortable and stiff, but now it hurts all the time. The PT has me working on strength training in the VMO area and hip. I have even rented an E-stim machine to help re-educate the quad. Unfortunately, every time he tries to increase my workout to correct the imbalance on the patellar tendon, the kneecap gets aggravated and I regress again.

Help! I am a former volleyball player, basketball player, and softball player, and runner. The knee still can't tolerate running, and I am going stir crazy being so sedentary. I'm 44 years old, but I'm not ready to hang up my shoes yet. I welcome any suggestions anyone has about how to get over the hump. I've always considered myself to be an extremely motivated person, but 15 months with minimal progress is affecting my psyche.