Knee Brace/Support for returning to Sports

[Wintermute]

Just before the summer I managed to crap up my knee, some might remember the tread I made then asking about rehab.

I should be done with the physio/rehab early Feb with any luck.

Always had a somewhat iffy knee ever since an injury many years back, when I finally get the go ahead I'll have a slightly weaker knee that I did at the start of the year and want to make sure I take every precaution I can to make sure I don't re-injure the thing.

That said, I've been looking at knee braces.

Google search turns up scores of results with braces ranging from "cheap as chips" to "do I really need to eat this month?".

I've been told that I shouldn't need a brace once I'm done and discharged but any additional support I can get is welcome and it doubles as a psycological crutch to help me get back to speed faster.

I know other BG peeps have been in the same or similar situations and I know a lot of you engage in contact sports.

For those that use or have used knee braces for your preferred sport: any recommendations or suggestions on what I should be looking at?

Best one I've found at a glance in my current price range is the Mueller Hg 80. But I'm not entirely sure what I should be looking for and can't consult my physio 'til Monday.

Any advice or suggestions are welcome.

[Tyche]

Shouldn't your insurance cover it >.>

[Wintermute]

Shouldn't your insurance cover it >.>

I'm being made redundant at work (along with my entire office), which pays for my insurance.
That happens before I get cleared so it's coming out of my own pocket.

The BUPA people my work use are fucking useless anyway.

[Tyche]

Never used a knee brace, but what sport? I'd imagine your sport of preference will probably result in a variance of braces.

[Bweigelt]

I think it really depends on the type of sport your playing. I had my Patella Tendon partially severed a couple of years ago and when I returned to playing hockey I tried a knee brace but found it just wasn't practical. It was constrictive and limited my skating motion. However for things like Basketball I know some athletes swear by their braces. Really I think it comes down to a comfort thing, and I would definitely want to test out any brace I was looking at before purchasing if possible.

[Tyche]

I'd think that you could rent some of the high end braces from rehab supply stores. We have some here that rent out just about anything, I'd try there.

[Wintermute]

It's skateboarding almost exclusively, need to see if there's any local places in Spain that let you try them out now.

Poop. Hate crossing the border.

[Talus]

It depends, some knee braces are bulky and designed to prevent any rotation (but allow flexion/extension of the knee). I don't know what your specific situation is other than needing it for skateboarding, but you probably don't need that. What exactly did you do to your knee anyway? Torn ACL? Meniscus?

[Wintermute]

It depends, some knee braces are bulky and designed to prevent any rotation (but allow flexion/extension of the knee). I don't know what your specific situation is other than needing it for skateboarding, but you probably don't need that. What exactly did you do to your knee anyway? Torn ACL? Meniscus?

Tore the ACL and a Bucket-Handle tear of the Medial Meniscus they normally wouldn't bother to repair. =/

[Talus]

Usually repair goes pretty smoothly for a bucket-handle tear as opposed to removal. Any reason they didn't bother to repair? Did insurance not cover it?

[Wintermute]

Usually repair goes pretty smoothly for a bucket-handle tear as opposed to removal. Any reason they didn't bother to repair? Did insurance not cover it?

No they did repair it, just that the surgeon kept giving me the idea it was a minor tear.

Post-op (after the first surgery) he tells me it was a small tear in the Meniscus and that there's a slight tear in my ACL.

Few weeks later after the ACL reconstruction he tells me it's a tear they normally wouldn't try to repair and a fully detatched ACL.

Quack keeps getting different measurements of my quads too, keeps telling me I've lost muscle mass even though you can blatantly tell my leg is bigger.