Conservative treatment of iliotibial band syndrome: a scoping review

Details

Supervisors

Nguyen, Anh Phong ; VanCant, Joachim

Faculty

Faculté des sciences de la motricité

Degree label

Master [120] en sciences de la motricité, orientation générale

Abstract

Background: Iliotibial band syndrome (ITBS) is the second most common cause of knee pain and the first cause of lateral knee pain in runners. The optimal conservative treatment of this pathology remains unknow and many interventions are used without clear evidence. A scoping review was conducted to provide an analysis of the literature around the conservative treatment of ITBS. Methods: Studies were identified using MEDLINE, EMBASE, Scopus and Cochrane up to January 2020. Only conservative types of treatments were included and described into eight groups. Results: A total of 84 studies were included. The most commonly mentioned treatment modalities are stretching in 66 studies, adjuvant usage in 61 and general modifications in 57. Among these categories, the most commonly used treatment sub-categories are ITB stretching in 52 studies, medication in 47 and ice application in 41. This subject grew in popularity with time with one study published in 1978, nine in the 1980’s and 1990’s each, 22 in the 2000’s and 43 in the 2010’s. This subject was widespread over the world with 57 studies from North America, 9 from Europe, 7 from Oceania and Africa each and 4 from Asia. Conclusion: The lack of literature makes it difficult to evaluate which treatment modalities are recommended. Some studies showed that focusing on strengthening, neuromuscular control and analyzing the kinematics and biomechanics can be interesting ways for managing ITBS.