Thursday, April 22, 2010 Janice asks

Q: Knee brace advice for OA.

Hi, I have grade 4 Osteoarthritis on the inside of my knee, and grade 2 on the outside. Has anyone got any experience of using knee braces? If so, which do you recommend? I have tried on an Ossur unloader but they are very expensive and therefore a risk if they don't help all that much. Please can anyone help? Thank you.

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Answers (2)

Christina Lasich, MD, Health Pro

4/23/10 9:08pm

I have been prescribing knee unloading braces for years and have yet to see a dramatic difference in pain levels. A cheaper alternative is a cane or a walking stick to unload up to 30% of the stress off the knees. Some people do really well with two trekking sticks, one for each hand. Even, serious hikers will use these assistive devices to ease the work off the lower body and legs. This is not a whimpy way out, just a real solution.

Dr. Christina Lasich, MD

Janice

4/26/10 10:40am

Thank you for your reply Dr. Laisch. I do use a pole especially for downhill but I also have a dog and find it a real struggle to manage 2 poles.

JTrempe

4/24/10 12:12am

Hi,

I am a physical therapist and treat people with knee osteoarthritis. Yes, there are some braces that can be helpful. The two basic types are knee sleeves and knee unloader braces.

To learn more, check out this page that goes through the benefits of the various braces:

http://www.joint-pain-solutions.com/arthritis-knee-brace.html

Hope this information is helpful.

Janice

4/26/10 10:42am

Thank you for the link to the website. The one which has been recommended is an unloader (Ossur) but as it is expensive I am unsure whether to commit myself. However, the information on the website was useful, thank you.

Janice

7/20/10 6:22am

Hi, thanks for that. I tried an Ossur Unloader but after a while the transferred pressure was too much for the outside of my knee as that too suffers grade 2 arthritis. I was struggling even just taking my large dog for a walk. So I had to dump that and revert back to my bog standard support bandage. The doctor also put me on Bu Trans pain patches which I find very effective. My knee is still very stiff joint wise and god forbid if I slip, but I am able to walk 8 miles or so at a weekend. I have also now got a Donjoy QT brace but I want to wait until I can no longer manage as I am. I don't want to get dependant on it...is this possible?

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Q: Knee brace advice for OA.

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