Prone hangs are simple rehabilitation stretches to improve knee extension.
Page updated June 2023 by Dr Sheila Strover (Clinical Editor)
Lie on your belly on a firm surface like a table, supporting the thigh but allowing the lower limb to hang over the edge of the table. The limb's weight provides the stretch.
If you need to, you can use the other leg to assist with the stretch.
Passive stretching
Passive stretches are gentle as long as each stretch is given a minute or so before being repeated. When an end-point is reached, the other leg can be used to gradually take the movement a few degrees further.
The importance of full extension
It is really important to regain those last few degrees of extension, because it allows 'lock-back' of the knee, so that one can stand unsupported.
Forum discussions
- Loss of extension
Regaining extension may be a function of both quads strengthening and extension stretching.
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Relevant material -
eBook - Cornerstones of Early Knee Rehabilitation
by Mr Sebastiano Nutarelli (Physiotherapist). Free to download.