Knee Braces???

[AKtoad]

Here's the story: I got crossed up on a jump and had to bail, in mid flight my current knee pads got hooked on the end of the handle bars. When the sled hit the ground my knee was between the bars and the snow. Hurt like he'll but finished the day and went on with life, three weeks later and getting worse I finally go see the healer. The doc said I have a small tear in my MCL. Now I need knee braces, he said I should be good to go in several weeks to start working it on the bike. So what braces to buy? Thinking about sixsixones mx3 or asteriks? Any opinions?

 

[theultrarider]

Most all the old mx guys that have been through surgerys are all running asterics. Most say that had they bought them BEFORE the surgery, they wouldn't have needed to get cut on in the first place. They are not cheap, but then neither is getting hurt.

 

[homeslice]

Heard good things about EVS's also...

Check out thumpertalk.com/forum, lot of MX guys on there with experience with knee pads.

 

[bonebreaker zack]

I wear don joy when i ride.. tore acl on both knees ...one last year and the other the year before. really comfortable brace and you can remove the gaurd when you dont need it, like when you wear it around the house. i dont think i can ride without them , knees would pop out of place if i didnt wear them.

 

[907riders.com]

I have been running Asterisks for the since 2002.. Great braces and very adjustable. ACL Alographs (cadaver) in each knee.

 

[BLOME]

been runnin the EVS's since 05 no problems.. they have the built in knee pads also...

 

[IbBroken]

I also have a cadaver ACL in right knee ( had that one installed on the second go around) I have a don Joy brace and its ok I would like to try the evs but have not done so have heard good things about both. My Dr. is the one who recomended the don joy.

 

[IQRIDR]

The thor forces are really nice too, they carry them at Anchorage Yamaha..nice padding and knee support

 

[(907)733]

which brace?

Trying to decide between asterisk knee braces or the breg fusion. Yeah, breg isn't really a riding brace, but supposedly pro ball players use em; but I cant afford both and the breg has advantages for every day wear (&mountaineering)
Breg is also supposed to lift pressure off medial side. My klim pants do have knee pads, their weakness has been stated.
I popped my acl & ripped the medial meniscus in half about a yr & a half ago. I STUPIDLY waited 5 months before seeing Dr. (due to no insurance, now 35k in debt, finally forced to when meniscus folded over & couldn't straighten leg(mucho oucho). I had microfractures in my femur also.
It's been almost 13 months since surgery; not the same leg.
Also, Doc told me DO NOT plant, push off, or pivot that leg for *6*months,
but with my 08 m8 beggin to b rode, good snow, and ******* friends callin me a puss for not going; I started riding 2 months after surgery, bad move, I couldnt even walk without crutches for 1 month. So, brainiac that I am I bound my knee w/ace bandages and went boondockin. (try it w/out planting or pivoting or pushing off...yeah right). So the damage: my cadavers acl, slightly stretched(not to bad), remaining meniscus ripped, not in half though like before. Once again, no doc advice(my diagnosis).
If anyones still reading any help on this matter would be greatly appreciated.
The braces do help alot and I'm ready to spend $500+ in hopes it helps.
Even a similar story would be appreciated
Ive also been told recently that a chondroitin/glucosamine supplement would be beneficial for joint healing- any input thr?

 

[(907)733]

Ligament support is most important to me in a knee brace.

In my opinion don joy is a cheaper brand, like mueller, they work, but I'd look elsewhere for quality...

 

[(907)733]

snopro81---the asterisks?

Is it like night and day, when you wear them?
Are your knees very unstable feeling?
How long after your surgery did you feel like you were still healing?
Do you still have pain?
Do you think the asterisks would be comfortable for walking miles?
I have a cheap mueller brace thats gotta be upgraded, but even it helps.
THanks in advance for any and all input.

 

[nojoke]

Trying to decide between asterisk knee braces or the breg fusion. Yeah, breg isn't really a riding brace, but supposedly pro ball players use em; but I cant afford both and the breg has advantages for every day wear (&mountaineering)
Breg is also supposed to lift pressure off medial side. My klim pants do have knee pads, their weakness has been stated.
I popped my acl & ripped the medial meniscus in half about a yr & a half ago. I STUPIDLY waited 5 months before seeing Dr. (due to no insurance, now 35k in debt, finally forced to when meniscus folded over & couldn't straighten leg(mucho oucho). I had microfractures in my femur also.
It's been almost 13 months since surgery; not the same leg.
Also, Doc told me DO NOT plant, push off, or pivot that leg for *6*months,
but with my 08 m8 beggin to b rode, good snow, and ******* friends callin me a puss for not going; I started riding 2 months after surgery, bad move, I couldnt even walk without crutches for 1 month. So, brainiac that I am I bound my knee w/ace bandages and went boondockin. (try it w/out planting or pivoting or pushing off...yeah right). So the damage: my cadavers acl, slightly stretched(not to bad), remaining meniscus ripped, not in half though like before. Once again, no doc advice(my diagnosis).
If anyones still reading any help on this matter would be greatly appreciated.
The braces do help alot and I'm ready to spend $500+ in hopes it helps.
Even a similar story would be appreciated
Ive also been told recently that a chondroitin/glucosamine supplement would be beneficial for joint healing- any input thr?

Here is my input...... December 08, broken femur/condyle at Turny, broken fibula, laymans terms, split my knee in half. Impacted joing side of the femur. I also aggravated most of my major ligaments acl/pcl/mcl/lcl. Very small meniscus damage also. I damaged a major amount of cartlidge on my kneecap on the underside. In a nutshell a bomb went off in my leg. I was on crutches for 6.5 months, 2 surgeries, alot of pain, and alot of physical therapy and still to this day continue to improve my leg.

The biggest single thing that helped me was listening to your doc, and physical therapy, and having a workout plan to better your healing. Dont think that your leg will heal itself because it wont, if you dont to better the support system if your leg, it will stay the same. I would suggest getting on a stationary bike, work on quad excercises, leg presses, squats, stability/balance excercies etc, all with light weights. Your Quad is what supports the majority of your weight, and is the core of knee strength.

Depends on which doctor you ask, mine was one of the best in the state/northwest knee braces are nothin but a bandaid to hide a problem. Not a big issue for some of the things sledders do, but when you rely on them to provide all of your stability and support your only hurting yourself in the long run. I wear a neoprene brace, and knee pads, that is about it. I had researched the heavy duty braces, but my doc said I would only be hurting myself in the long run.


If your looking for joint support, I suggest this one. I tried a couple different ones, and this is by far the best one I have ever taken, and continue to take. Not the cheapest, its several pills like a vitamin pack. this is the cheapest place you can get it. It has all the needed joint support items, MSM, chondrotin, etc, then some.......

http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/univ/flex.html

Im not saying a knee brace is a bad thing, but dont rely on it to provide you with 100% of what you need, if you are, chances are you need to scale back your riding, and work on rehabbing your knee. There is always next season, and more snow, but if you dont rehab like your supposed to, it will continue to be a problem, and **** up next season too. If I didnt put in the work to make my knee better over the winter/spring/summer of 09, there is no way I would be able to ride standing up this year, and so far, this season is treating me well.


Here is what my knee looked like....before/after, and surgery

 

[AKtoad]

Well here is what I did, no joke is right my doc advised me to do the work and get stronger and not to rely on a brace for everyday use but also said get a set of braces that restrict movement ( side to side, hyperextension...) when I am riding. This will help with future injury's not to help old ones. So I bought Sixsix ones Mx3 braces and they were junk and returned them the same day. Then I got a pair of Astericks and I have two rides with them and they are great, lucky for me I am a little guy so they set me back $400. I won't ride without them now. For me the stationary bike and light leg lifts was the best way to make my leg feel better. Now that I went through that the doc now wants to remove the hardware in both my legs from a previous injury. I think I will wait till the end of the working season for that.

 

[(907)733]

knees

My doc also didn't think highly of braces; but the joint IS damaged. Once damaged it'll never be as good as it was. I agree that the brace shouldn't be worn always, dont want to be dependent; but climbing 12000' mts, rock climbing, catchin big air on the sled; I consider it ppe, necessary gear, like a helmet. Like stated earlier in thread: if I'd have been wearing a good brace when I got hurt it wouldn't of been near as bad. They don't call it practicing medicine for nothing; Doctors opinions vary almost as much as lawyers.
My knee is much better than pre surgery, & the remaining meniscus isn't damaged anywhere close to as bad as the other was. I still feel like I cant trust the knee though.
**Are your guys quadriceps close to up to strength?
Mine is still quite a bit weaker.
I couldn't afford pTherapy, but I did rehab the knee alot on my own. And my Dr was a dick; acted like he didn't have time; didn't inform me of anything unless I asked directly (the only way I knew to ask anything was from research on the net). My 1st surgery/major recovery, really made me feel like doctors are just glorified mechanics. He especially didn't prepare me for the long hard recovery.
*Bottom line, alot of people wear things like back braces, thumb braces, helmets, chest protection,.....even if the joint isn't damaged knee braces are a smart move if you are into pushin limits. Knees Are the most susceptible joint to damage. As you grow older the cartilage between your bones gets worn thinner, till bones contact & osteoarthritis follows. Knees take the most wear and tear (besides spine possibly), and Riding all day uses the hellll out of them. I Will develop arthritis in my left knee 'cuz of lack o meniscus.
The more I wear a good brace when pushing my body and the better my conditioning and nutrition, the longer it'll be before my "ole"(im26) knee starts to let me know when the weather is changing.