The ITB (aka ilio-tibial band) is a thick band of fascia connective tissue that runs down the outside of your thigh from the pelvis to the knee. As your knee bends and straightens, the ITB passes across a bony lump on the outside of the knee. The thicker and tighter your ITB and the more times it rubs over the bony lump, the more likely it is that you will get friction-inspired inflammation and pain.
Steady paced jogging creates more problems than speed intervals or sprinting. Downhills or running on a sideways-sloping surface (e.g. the edge of a road) also notoriously provoke ITB friction syndrome. There is no single biomechanical problem that causes it, so just about any runner is susceptible. Inadequate stretching of all the leg muscles and insufficient gluteal (buttock) muscle strength and endurance are common findings in our assessment. We normally find tender myofascial trigger points or knots in the muscles attaching to the ITB which contribute to the tension on the band. Usually this injury gets worse if you continue to run, and will then take longer to settle down.
