How is iliotibial band syndrome diagnosed?
Pain on the outside of the knee or hip after running raises a fair question about how anyone confirms the cause. Here is how a published source describes the diagnosis of iliotibial band syndrome.
The short answer: history plus a physical exam
Cleveland Clinic says a healthcare provider might diagnose iliotibial band syndrome after discussing your history of exercise and symptoms and performing a physical examination.
What the provider checks
Cleveland Clinic says your provider should check for specific signs of this condition. Two of them are listed below.
- Grating sounds or a grating feeling (crepitus) when your knee or hip moves.
- Pain over the greater trochanter in one or both of your hips.
Notes for the IT band exam
You can prepare for the first conversation. Note what exercise you do, how often, and when the symptoms show up. A reader in Elmwood Park who keeps a short log gives the provider more to work with than one who relies on memory.
Nearby problems are worth reading about too. A page on stress fractures and a page on shin splints describe two of them.
The standard: a diagnosis should name its evidence
A finished diagnosis rests on your exercise history, your symptoms and an exam, not on a guess. If you leave a visit without knowing which signs were checked, ask. That answer tells you how firm the diagnosis is before you return to running.