As we live in a fast-paced and demanding world, our bodies have to bear the brunt of the activities we do. The body area or joint that bears most of the body weight is our knee joints. The weight-bearing problem is majorly faced by athletes and field workers who need o put excessive pressure on the knees or require repetitive knee movements. Healthcare professionals suggest wearing knee support braces as they help in many conditions. For example, from preventing overuse injuries to reducing the symptoms of knee injuries, knee support braces are helpful. In this article, we are going to discuss in what conditions you can use knee braces or when you need to wear them to get maximum benefits. So, let’s begin our discussion here:
Conditions in which wearing knee braces can help you
Knee support braces can help you in a variety of ways; from preventing injuries to minimising the symptoms and speeding up recovery. Here we come with the major conditions when you should consider wearing knee support braces to get maximum benefits:
1. Knee Support for Walking & Running
Running or walking are considered the best workout activities that help you keep active. People who are involved regularly in running and walking activities may be more prone to injuries and knee injuries are among the common issues. Knee injuries happen due to some factors. These factors may include overusing your knees, poor biomechanics, muscle imbalances, improper techniques, insufficient warm-up, inadequate footwear, and others.
The common knee injuries found in runners may include patellofemoral pain syndrome (also known as runner’s knee), patellar tendinitis, bursitis, meniscus tear, and others. Wearing knee support braces for walking and running helps reduce the chances of injuries. Knee braces offer adequate stability and support, compression, and ensure patellar alignment. Consequently, they help keep your knees safe from injuries.
2. Knee Support Braces During Gym
Several exercises during gym can put excessive pressure on your knee joints, causing pain and other discomforts. The common factors causing knee injuries during gym may include improper lifting, overloading, lack of warm-up, repetitive motions, and incorrect equipment usage. Wearing knee support braces during gym and exercises helps reduce the chances of knee injuries. Knee support braces provide your knees with proper support and stabilisation, helping avoid overextension of the knee joints. As well as this, they provide your knee joints and muscles with compression to improve blood circulation. Thus, it helps avoid pain and swelling during gym.
3. Knee braces for cycling
Cycling is another form of body workout that comes with many amazing benefits. But, overusing and improper techniques may bring cyclists potential risks. For example, improper bike fit, overuse, incorrect pedalling techniques, muscle weakness or imbalance, and traumatic events can put excessive pressure on the knee joints, causing pain and other discomforts. Wearing knee support braces for cycling helps cyclists avoid the chances of injuries.
Knee braces for cyclists are designed to provide needed support and compression. Thus, they help improve circulation and reduce the impacts of overusing knees. Consequently, it helps cyclists to avoid the chances of overuse injuries. At the same time, cyclists are also recommended to wear appropriate or needed equipment to get a safe cycling experience.
4. Knee braces for arthritis
Knee arthritis is among the common knee problems. The problem is usually found in athletes. The common factors contributing to the development of knee arthritis may include older age, overusing knee joints, obesity, joint instability, inflammatory conditions, and genetic issues. The common symptoms associated with knee arthritis may include knee pain, joint stiffness, swelling, limited range of motion, joint instability, and others depending on your conditions.
Wearing knee braces for arthritis is one of the best and easy treatment plans to manage the symptoms of knee arthritis. Knee support braces help improve blood circulation in the affected areas, helping reduce pain, swelling, and other discomforts. They also protect the knees from further damage. Thus, they help speed up recovery and promote healing.
5. Knee braces for ligament injuries
Knee ligament injuries are also come among common knee injuries and the problem is usually found in athletes involved in repetitive movements of the knees. As well as this, the injuries are common among older people and people who previously suffered from the same issues. A knee is made up of several ligaments and common knee ligament injuries are the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury, medial collateral ligament (MCL) injury, lateral collateral ligament, (LCL) injury, and posterior collateral ligament (PCL) injury.
Wearing knee support braces can help you avoid the chances of knee ligament injuries during strenuous activities. If you are suffering from any ligament injury, knee braces can also help you reduce the symptoms. Knee braces are best at providing needed support and sufficient compression. Thus, they help improve blood circulation, helping reduce, pain, swelling, and other discomforts. They also keep your injured knee protected, helping reduce the chances of further injuries.
6. Knee Support braces after surgery
Where knee support braces help you avoid the chances of knee injuries or reduce the pain and other symptoms following a knee injury, at the same time, they may also help promote healing following knee surgery. Several extreme conditions may require surgery for a full recovery. After surgery, surgeons or healthcare professionals suggest immobilising your knees for a specific time duration. At the same time, you need to provide protection, support, and enough compression to your knees. All this can be possible when wearing knee support braces.
Closing statement
Indeed, wearing knee support braces help you in many conditions. From preventing overuse injuries to speeding up recovery following an injury or promoting healing after surgery, knee braces are considered the most helpful tools. What you need to do is to choose the right type of knee braces according to your needs. For this purpose, it is suggested to consult your healthcare professionals and let them decide on the right type of knee braces according to your needs.
Another thing you must consider is the right time of wearing knee support braces. Ensure that you are wearing the knee support braces under the time or duration suggested by your healthcare professionals. Remember that wearing a knee support brace for a prolonged time or overusing them may cause circulation issues or damage your skin.