Ive been having some knee issues of late and wondering what others are doing around braces or similar.

Got myself one of those donjoy knee braces with the hinge thingies. Called the playmaker. Or something like that, brilliant.

Can get it from the US for 120 to 150 after postage pay 400 plus here. Go figure!!

I heard they were a Placebo, that in fact they do nothing at all to prevent injury

Got mine off eBay international. Some ship to Australia some don't. Trust me you don't want to pay local prices looking at 3.5 to 4 times as much.

The playmaker is designed for those that need to be active when using it. Infact I don't us mine at the moment helped me get my knee right again and still kite!

Well it helped me stabilise my knee during recovery and I felt on numerous occasions stopping my leg/knee from over extending. Also kind of reminded you there was an issue there and to slow down. Maybe it does a bit of both. Strapping is always the superior method though but who can be fagged strapping up every time you want to go out!

I have also found that if I wear one during the day it speeds up the recovery then if I don't. Anecdotal and non scientific but that's what I have found. Some support surely is better than none.

cheap option for some support, chop 300mm off your old wetsuit arm or leg depending on knee thigh size, personally i find getting on the mountain bike and ski squats are the go, also www.kiteboardingexercises.com is great for pre injury prevention, and post injury exercises, designed by dr sarah ellis whos a ripper kiter with videos great little site

That looks a ripper

I'm with Eppo, Dojoy knee brace.

Had it for 3 years, goes great.

Steve - Kitepower Sydney advocated Donjoy a few years back - I bought one (should have done an Eppo - re-internet but time was short) used it until knee strengthened up and meniscus fixed / stabilised - excellent - certainly not a placebo - you are provided with a number of keys which are designed to limit movement - so you customise it for your needs - which can change as you heal. Used this to my advantage on a ski trip - not fit enough (knee trouble!!) so locked the movement to take some of the load off my muscles - worked a charm..
Basic lesson is get a good one which is flexible enough to go over / under what you are wearing - i.e. over a wettie if required.

One exception I found I did not like running jogging in Donjoy - irritating - but doable - I don't play team sport so can't comment on that.
Health fund rebate too.

Cheers
AP

Bertie said..

My right knee is buggered. I've torn every ligament in it at one time or another. Luckily little no pain.
My CTI Knee brace was ok initally when I got back into things but now i find it restricts me too much (cant bend the knee past 90deg) and it slips down all the time.

I cant find a good soruce of Braces in Perth. I'd like a donjoy which some mates have in europe as long as they let me flex more.
Its really hard to shop for a brace online and i'm prepared to spend the money if a brace fits and doesnt eat holes in me every time I use it.
Anyone got any good leads?

I have done the same but to my left knee with still more to go. Just starting to look into braces, and CTI was what am looking at ,for the slippage they have a neoprene sleave that goes under it. But wanting to know if anyone has tried out both CTI and Donjoy as Mark Shinn uses

There must be several post from me on these things??
Anyway, I'm not busy and I have used both and still use them. I've got a custom CTi2 and after lots of back to back testing I've gone back to using this brace, for now.
I think they are both very similar, but the Donjoy I have is the Armor model www.djoglobal.com/products/donjoy/armor and its proven to be not quite as well suited to use in salt water as the CTi.
My Donjoy has a fair amount of rust on the buckles that hold the velcro straps. Otherwise is is in good order after more than a years use.

My first CTi lasted 3+ years, a long time IMO as I used it quite a lot, I called the distributor about a third set of replacement straps and in the conversation I mentioned that parts of the surface finish original brace had cracked. The importer asked me to send it back as it sounded like "delamination" and this was covered by warranty. In the meantime I purchased a Donjoy. Around 5 weeks later I was sent a brand new CTi brace, which I was very stoked about!!
I travel with the Ci because it is carbon, lighter and nicer to wear for longer periods of time. I think the Donjoy design is stronger and provides more support and if I spent more time customising its shape it would be equally comfortable. I've noticed now that Donjoy have a more advanced model and they offer it in a custom option.
I needed a custom due to the original injury and the way that it has changed the shape of my leg beyond what an off the shelf brace will adjust for.

Gall Bros medical is the importer and distributor of CTi in Australia gallbrosmedical.com.au/

Donjoy seem to work through independent distributors in Australia, who I imagine make a healthy commission or markup on each brace they sell. The person that sold me mine was a qualified physiotherapist, that visited me, and later delivered the brace and made sure I knew how to fit it properly, I was very happy with their service.

I've been warned about wearing the braces for long periods of time due to tightness of the straps and the risk of thrombosis/clots, but have never had an issue with this.

My CTI makes me bleed evertime i use it without wearing a wetsit under it.

It slips around a pisses me off because as it slides down it messes with your knees bend geometry and makes my knee hurt.

Steve what bend angles can you get? with mine I cant bend my knee past 90deg.

Steve,
I only kite strappless on the surfboard these days but will need to ride the old TT a little soon while teaching the GF kiting.
Maybe I should go back to the physio/prosthetics dude who measured me up in the first place for a refurb. he didnt seem to have much of a range unfortunately and nobody in Perth stocks Donjoy.

I really want it for my windsurfing tbh, but I find it too restrictive while wave riding.
My last knee issue was going over the falls of a 3m+ wave with only my front foot stuck in the strap. Was on crutches for 3 weeks and in a knee brace for a futher 8 weeks (did ankle and MCL).
I guess i want a knee brace that doesnt feel like i'm wearing a knee brace.

The straps slip during the session. New straps dont seem to help. they turn to rubbish after a few sessions!
I emailed gall bros. maybe they have some ideas.

eppo said..

My donjoy is as tight as a nuns nasty when I put it on. Sounds like it is not the right fit, as Steve said. Doesn't even need straps but it has 4!

hey there, is your brace the donjoy defiance 111 custom, it seems they have combined the two like kitepower was hoping for , both are carbon . but expensive at 1300 but will put up 1000 to an op if you damage your acl further while wearing it. Gives me a bit more of a pull over the cti. Just having a bit of trouble deciding between the two. if anyone can push towards one or the other, would be interested in the info thanks