RESUMO
Females are more prone for lateral displacement of patella than males due to increased Q-angle (15–18°) in them compared to males (12–15°). In a normal state, lateral displacement is prevented by geometry of the joint and by the passive stabilizers. Even though contraction of the quadriceps tends to displace the patella laterally, vastus medialis oblique (VMO) acts medially and posteriorly as much as it acts proximally, and so its tension helps in resisting the Q angle effect. There are two procedures in common practice to reduce Q-angle and thereby to prevent lateral displacement of patella– either through vastus medialis oblique (VMO) strengthening or by isometric quadriceps activation (quadriceps muscle strengthening). We wanted to compare the effects of isometric quadriceps activation and VMO strengthening in reducing Q angle in a group of young females.METHODSA non-randomized, two group, pre-test, post-test assessment of Q-angle was done. Twenty healthy females of 18-20 age group were selected and randomly divided into two groups. Isometric quadriceps activation and VMO strengthening was done for 4 weeks. Q-angles were measured before and after the strengthening exercise using a long arm goniometer.RESULTSThe mean q angle before treatment was 21. (minimum 20 and maximum 23). While after the treatment, q angles were significantly reduced in both the groups and mean q angle was 16.3.CONCLUSIONSBoth the isometric quadriceps activation and VMO strengthening reduced Q-angle significantly and there was no significant difference between the two procedures. Results of this study help the physiotherapist in choosing the exercise for the management of patellofemoral pain and lateral displacement of patella.