Introduction: Patellar tendinopathy, also known as jumper's knee, is a common injury to the patellar ligament that occurs in individuals who frequently perform jump tasks. The main symptom is pain that occurs at the distal pole of the patella. The injury is common in professional and recreational basketball and volleyball players. Several risk factors for the development of the pathology are known, but the influence of kinetics and kinematics of movement on the occurrence of patellar tendinopathy is not entirely clear. Purpose: We wanted to evaluate the influence of kinetics and kinematics of takeoff and landing on the occurrence of patellar tendinopathy by reviewing the literature. Methods: We searched the literature in the PubMed database, where we first searched for suitable articles with the keyword "jumper's knee", then with the keyword "patellar tendinopathy biomechanics". Out of a total of 174 freely available articles, we selected 5 articles for this literature review based on the content of the abstact and keywords. Results: The results of most studies show that subjects with patellar tendinopathy have reduced hip and knee flexion, different positions of the hip and knee in the sagittal plane, altered ankle motion, altered knee momentums, different directions and magnitudes of ground reaction forces and reduced maximum knee extension momentum. The results of individual studies do not confirm these findings. Discussion and conclusion: Due to the conflicting results of individual studies, it is not possible to draw clear conclusions regarding the differences in jump kinematics and kinetics between individuals with and without patellar tendinopathy. It is also not possible to state with certainty which kinematic and kinetic characteristics are the cause of tendinopathy and which are merely movement adaptations due to pain provocation. Additional studies with better quality and more standardized methodology are needed.
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