By Calvin Sim, Principal Sports Physiotherapist, Back2Sports
There are more than 10 different types of knee supports on the market at present. Which one should you get? That decision depends on two major type factors:
– Type of injury
– Type of sport that knee support is required for
A knee support should not be for long-term daily wear as this will weaken knee muscles, making one very dependent on the support. Knee support should be used as a temporary measure to manage your knee discomfort until professional advice is sought. The best way to manage your knee discomfort is to see your physiotherapist for prescribed exercises that would be beneficial for you and to strengthen your knee
Here is a simple guide to five of the more common types of knee supports.
Closed Patellar Knee Support
This knee support is generally used to help control slight swelling of the knee and can also be used for jogging or brisk walking. Commonly used with knee pain that is difficult to isolate the area of pain. However, due to the closed nature of this knee support, it is not recommended for daily use if you’ve got to climb stairs or squatting. This is because it would compress your knee cap (Patellar bone) against your thigh bone when your knee is bent more than 45o thus increasing the risk of degeneration of the knee cap and increasing your pain.
Open Patellar Knee Support
Similar indication to the closed patellar knee support but this can be used for daily use as it doesn’t compress your knee cap. Recommended for people who have pain behind their knee cap with difficulty climbing stairs or squatting.
Hinged Knee Support
Generally prescribe by orthopedic surgeons or sports physicians for athletes with ligament damage that has been repaired to increase stability and to protect the ligament. This is the ONLY type of support that should be worn every waking hour until advised to remove either by your surgeon or physiotherapist. This support however is not allowed for most sports due to the metal parts of the support.
Adjustable Stabilizing Knee Support
This type of knee support would be suitable for sports if there is no metal support. Normally recommended for athletes who have recovered from ligament injuries and are just starting to go back to sports but still have a slight fear. Gives athletes a fair amount of support.
Patellar tendon support
Commonly for people who complain of pain over the patellar tendon on running or jumping. Purpose of this support is to compress the patellar tendon to dissipate the strain to across the whole tendon and thus decreases pain.
Hi,
I’m 5’7″ tall and weight around 65kg’s.Since i want to reduce weight i do the Orbitrac , but it gives me lot of pain to my knees.So i find it very difficult to continue it after riding it for about 05 minutes.My friend told me to wear a knee guard and try.What is the best recommended knee guard that i can use and can use?
Thanks a lot!
Hi,
my knees ( both) hurt after three to four games of squash. the pain is towards the center lower half of the knee cap. One Night’s rest and they are fine in the morning but start to pain again after three to four games. i have never had this problem after playing tennis for good three years. what kind of knee support should i use ?
Aircast’s infra patellar brand is recommended for your kind of pain…
Hi, I have a torn ACL and my joint cartilage is wearing out according to the results of a MRI scan. My physio therapist does not recommend me going for surgery. I would like to continue running but there is discomfort in the joint. What kind of knee guard would be recommended?
Hello. I heard from my friends that one should wear a kneeguard to protect the knees, if one is going to jog for almost everyday. Is it true?
Kim,
There are a lot of surgeons out there that does ACL reconstruction and all are fairly competent and have good results. Depending on your budget and preference, there are a lot of choices. If you need more information, please feel free to contact me via email calvin.sim@back2sports.com.sg
Dear Hemantha,
I would strongly recommend that you have your knee assessed and managed before returning to sports. If you have completed your rehabilitation exercise for your knee and still feel pain, then I will suggest looking at your mechanics of movement and get your therapist to train your muscles in a specific manner for your sport. As for the support, the Deluxe Knee stabilizer would be highly recommended but getting it assessed properly is most important. Hope this is of good help to you.
Hi! My sis have a torn ALC since 1 year ago and have been under going some physio treatment. May I know is there any well-known good surgeon that you could recommend for reconstructive ACL surgery?
I am 39 yeras old ,and has recurring ligament problems for last 7 Years with last 3 years not being able to participate in anay sports.I need to start palying Cricket & Badminton in addition to jogging .What type of knee protection you are recomending me ?.
Kai, thanks for sharing your experience. I strongly agree with you that the knee supports would need to be changed once it wears out. Generally, depending on the frequency of use, the knee guard would need to be changed about 4 months.
Dear Noelle,
In your situation, I would strongly advise you to maybe get a more stable support like hinged braces rather than the ones that you can get off the shelf in pharmacies. This is because your sports are generally not contact in nature but if you’re thinking of going to start Roller-blading, the metal hinge braces should be something you would definately need as the push-off position of roller blading puts your knee in a vunerable position.
Hi Calv,
I tore my ACL clean 3 yrs back, and I have yet to undergo any form of reconstructive surgery due to the length of down-time, and re-hab period. My doctor did tell me that my muscles around the joint has been strong enough to hold up, but it is not a long term solution. I am currently 33 and I play basketball every week. I just want to re-iterate what you advised wrt the knee guards out in the market at the moment. The best I have tried so far (and trust me I have tried many brands’ various products), is still the Futuro Knee Stabilizer. However, I must emphasise that one must still do isolated conditioning to consistently strengthen the injured knee, and replace the knee guard once it wears on (neoprene stretches over time)
Hi,
I have a MCL and ACL tear from a skiing accident last year. I have not undergone ACL construction. Currently, I am still unable to squat fully on the injured leg. What type of knee guard would be suitable or would you recommend for jogging, cycling, hiking and potentially roller-blading use?
Dear Daniel,
You can try some of the pharmacies as they should carry. However, if you want, we do carry it in our clinics at Novena, Tras St and Parkway Parade. You can get our addresses on our website.
As for your rehab, your physiotherapist should put you on a sports specific rehab program where drills like shuttle run, single leg triple hop and agility drills should be done if you would want to return back to sports. These are important as the muscles needs to be trained to anticipate the movement to prevent further injuries.
Not undergoing an ACL reconstruction and still persisting with your normal activities, may increase your risk of degeneration. However, this is best discuss with your orthopeadic surgeon as he will be the best person to advise you.
There are about 20% of the population who have torn their ACL who can go about their normal activities without undergoing reconstruction. However, if you still want to run or return to soccer, it’s best to try undergoing a sports specific rehab first and when you return to sport and it still feels unstable, then I would recommend that you discuss your options with your surgeon.
Dear Matthew,
As for your ankle guard, I would suggest an ankle guard that would provide some degree of lateral support (for example Futuro Deluxe Ankle Stabilizer, Lace-up ankle brace). However, it would be better to undergo ankle rehab exercises like single leg stand, proprioception exercises and calf raises. If there’s any further queries, please feel free to contact us.
Hi Calvin, thanks for the information given for my queries. Where can I get the Futuro Delux Knee stabilizer? More importantly, what do you mean by undergoing proper rehab? My ACL tear was a few years ago, and I have gone through physiotherapy shortly after my operation to remove my ligament. I am not considering reconstruction surgery, so is there any way to strengthen my knee? (my knee “pops out” sometimes) If I do not undergo reconstruction, will my knee degenerate in the long run? Thank you.
Hi Calvin, thanks for the information given for my queries. Where can I get the Futuro Delux Knee stabilizer? More importantly, what do you mean by undergoing proper rehab? My ACL tear was a few years ago, and I have gone through physiotherapy shortly after my operation to remove my ligament. I am not considering reconstruction surgery, so is there any way to strengthen my knee? (my knee “pops out” sometimes) If I do not undergo reconstruction, will my knee degenerate in the long run?
Sorry for asking about ankle guards although this topic is on knee.
Hi , I’m a soccer player that train 3 times a week without any break. Only during exams week. Both my ankles always have recurrent pain . I bought the Bio-Ray ankle guard but it doesn’t seem to have any use . Do you have any recommendations ?
Dear Daniel,
The best kind of knee guard at this point of time for playing football is the Futuro Delux Knee Stabilizer as it has some re-enforcement plastics on the side of the knee guard. But, however, with a torn ACL, undergoing proper rehab is the best way to manage it if you do not want to consider reconstructive surgery. This is because if you persist with playing football with a torn ACL, it would lead to further aggravation of your injury and may even lead to further damage to the knee. If there is any further queries, please feel free to contact us or any sports physician or physiotherapists.
Hi, what kind of knee guard should be used for an existing ACL tear, if I want to jog and play football?