Knee brace?

[davincisop]

So I've been working on strengthening my knees over the last year and I haven't seen a whole lot of difference other than my knees "popping" more. I have had it happen once before in my right knee and required surgery to shave down the cartilage that had broken. The doc at the time said it was the knee cap sliding over bumpy cartilage. It was good for several years until I came back to skating. Now both knees do it and at times it can be a bit painful. I've taken to wearing a knee brace when I skate but it's a cheapie from walgreens. I was wondering if anyone has any suggestions for a good one or some sort of compression sleeve that might help to offer some support. Any suggestions?

[fsk8r]

I've got multiple ones for my dodgy knee but end up wearing the cheapie one because it's not neoprene (I don't want sweaty knees when skating) and it's not that bulky. The one the PT ordered from me is neoprene and is too bulky so it makes knee bend difficult.
But I would recommend that you talk to a specialist to get one suited to your particular problems. There are LOTS out there which all support the knee slightly differently because of the different injuries. And if you are selecting one with the specialist you can discuss what you need it to be able to do to make it compatible with skating. Depending on how serious the problems you might have to compromise on the skating requirements to get adequate support for the knee.

[jjane45]

Bump up hoping for more knee brace recommendations. I was talking to skating friends last night and mentioned my knee feeling funny from sit spin training, it was suggested that I try to get some support, like something from Walgreen's.

If you use knee support, what do you use and is it effective? Is it possible to use knee brace in conjunction with gel knee pads? Also any off ice stretches you recommend before and after skating specifically for the knee?

My left knee can handle deep shoot the ducks alright, but when I actively trained for a lower sit spin position, the knee would bother me the next day or two. Not painful, just conscious in a way and more sensitive to change in weather.

[fsk8r]

If you use knee support, what do you use and is it effective? Is it possible to use knee brace in conjunction with gel knee pads? Also any off ice stretches you recommend before and after skating specifically for the knee?

What sort of knee pads have you got? The ones which you hold in place under tights, or the ones which hold themselves in place? If they're the ones which need holding in place, you might be able to get something with sufficient space, but I'd think the gel pads are going to limit some of the support.

(I do find that you get slightly less bruising with having the extra layer than when you don't wear anything.)

[sarahspins]

Bunheads!

Gel pad + support = best idea ever.

I rarely skate without mine now.

[jjane45]

I use skatingsafe type gel pads. Not sure how would it interfere with knee brace's effectiveness?

How much support does bunheads provide?

If I'm to seek professional evaluation, where should I start? PT? orthopaedic?

[sarahspins]

I would say medium support, but I guess that depends on how they fit you.

If you have a good primary care doc that you already see I would start there since every PT I've ever seen has required a referral or prescription even when my insurance doesn't care.  They can also get the process started with orders for x-rays or an MRI.

[Query]

Can anyone provide a link to the Bunhead knee braces?

Are they just knee pads, or do they provide support? I'm looking for support to deal with knee pain, not knee pads for crawling around on the floor.

I've recently been using McDavid 401 ($16 at Sports Authority) neoprene stretch braces that fit around the knee. They are not adjustable, so, depending on the time of day and how much I've been on my feet, I need one of two different sizes. Because it lacks the open hole over the patella (kneecap), it isn't rated for tracking problems.

I chose ones without the hole, because, on the adjustable ones I tried, which did very little for me, the ones with the hole did even less.

The knee hurts less - maybe all I really need is a little extra pressure across the front of the kneecap, to keep it in track, because it doesn't actually hurt to bend my knee sideways a bit.

I still haven't found anything to provide vertical assistance to my weak muscles to straighten my knees while supporting body weight...

[jjane45]

How about knee taping or knee strapping?

[Query]

>JJane said
>How about knee taping or knee strapping?

As I said at the start, I started with a tape wrap. It worked better than the adjustable braces, but less well than the neoprene stretchy thing. Also, the glue on the [Ace brand] wrap wore off after a couple uses, so it would mean carrying a bulky can of spray glue in the skate bag.

I looked up kinesio taping for knees with tracking problems. Find a page where it showed tape running vertically from above the knee to below it - in other words, I guess it just applies pressure across the front of the knee, like the neoprene thingie. Wanted to try it, but the local medical supply stores don't sell kinesio tape. Would it only help on the maximally bent knee, because it would release tension the rest of the time, or does kinesio tape stretch a lot?

There are a lot of other web pages with fancier kinesio taping around the knee. They seem pretty complicated, and it looks like I would need a lot of medical knowledge, and an expensive expert diagnosis, to use the right one. Without knowledge, I fear to do more harm than good.

I do have a several year old diagnosis by a sports PT/ATC that I didn't have enough sideways (lateral/medial direction) muscle tension in the psoas, obliques, gluts, the whole hip flexor group, and I think the lower back, to keep the knee cap on track. He said I predominantly use quad and hamstring muscles, which aren't enough to stabilize kneecap position. He also said under-use of the other muscles meant they would not warm up, and therefore would not stretch adequately, and that this was consistent with my entire injury history.

But that was years ago, and I only went once. He had great references, is an athlete himself who said he had worked with many skaters and dancers, but he charged $100 for 30 - 40 minutes, and is over 6 hours away by car. I assume any PT would need many weeks or months of work with me to figure out what methods would work. I don't have knowledge or or confidence in the local PTs.

Besides, that PT/ATC favored exercises, to force me to use the alternate muscles, mostly long-held leg lifts to all extents and in all directions, while consciously using the other other muscles to supplement quads and hamstrings. I would feel guilty going back to him and admitting I have mostly stopped doing those exercises. 

I don't think kinesio taping was common when he gave the diagnosis, but might be wrong.

[Janie]

If you're still interested in Kinesio tape, you can buy it off Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FOXZI0/ref=oh_details_o06_s00_i00

It does stretch a bit, but it often should be stretched to a certain percentage already when you apply it, so it should be helpful more than just when the knee is fully bent. There are youtube videos showing you how to tape and what tension to apply in different situations, and it's really not that expensive, so you could give it a try. I had used this when I pulled my hamstring before (from stretching a spiral too much ), to the point where my muscle felt weak and I couldn't run suddenly (I play volleyball so I need to move around fast in short bursts). My friend who's a PT in training applied Kinesio tape on my leg and it worked wonders. I could use the muscle again! I continued using it myself later on, but I don't know how useful it was when applied by a non-professional like me, since my injury was far better by then. But still, I would suggest trying it out.

[sarahspins]

You may be surprised at where you can buy KT tape locally.. even some GNC stores carry it, just use the store locator to find somewhere near you

I think the tape can work wonders depending on why you are using it and how much support you really expect from it.  I don't really think it's appropriate or particularly well suited for major mechanical issues or injuries.  For minor problems and some chronic conditions, it can help, but it's not generally as supportive as wearing a brace is. 

I spent several months about 18 months ago taping my right knee because I was having tracking problems due to a muscle imbalance.  The tape helped some, working on strengthening my inner quads helped more, and after a while the tape seemed to be less effective (I'd corrected the imbalance) and I stopped using it.  I was never able to get more than a day's wear out of it though, so it wasn't a cheap "per wear" option, but a $20 roll would last 3 or 4 weeks depending on how much I skated, so it wasn't really that bad either.

I know that they have changed the pro tape since I used it.. I want to get some of the newer tape and see if taping my ouchy ankle to give it some extra support would help my recently diagnosed bone bruise.

[Purple Sparkly]

If a medical professional has informed you that you have a muscle imbalance and has given you exercises to help correct it, doing those exercises should be where you begin.  Strengthing weak muscles will help you more in the long run than any brace or tape.