Anyone, not just athletes, can experience lower extremity (leg) pain at any point throughout their lives. It can occur in young children, adolescents, middle age or older individuals. Not all pain is the result of a specific incident or accident. Pain can result from degeneration, overuse, repetitive motions, muscle imbalances or faulty movement pattern. It is important to look at the entire lower extremity when assessing why someone has, for instance, knee pain. Although, the person may only have pain in their knee, the driving force of this pain could be due to a dysfunction in the hip, ankle or foot. A thorough evaluation will be performed, looking at range of motion, flexibility, strength, posture and body mechanics during walking, squatting, bending, climbing stairs, lunging, etc. Many different tools may be used in treating pain including soft tissue massage, joint mobilizations, stretching, hot or cold packs, electrical stimulation or ultrasound, education, and exercises.