Custom Knee Bracing
Sports Centre Physiotherapy measures and fits custom knee braces for ligament instability and osteoarthritis.
Ligament Instability
Functional knee braces are useful in rehabilitation following ligamentous knee injuries and ACL reconstruction. They offer control of knee rotation and anteroposterior joint shifting.
Osteoarthritis
Unloader braces are designed to provide pain relief for OA sufferers by reducing the weight on the affected knee compartment. Studies generally show that unloader braces diminish pain, increase walking tolerance, provide better function and may delay the need for knee replacement surgery.
Knee braces should only be used in conjunction with a rehabilitation program that incorporates strength and balance training, flexibility, activity modification and technique refinement.
Custom Orthotics
While standing and walking, we are subjected to forces that inflict stress and strain throughout our bodies. When a foot imbalance is present there can be abnormal forces on the feet, knees, hips, back and/or neck that leads to pain and poor function. A foot imbalance must be corrected to improve body alignment and therefore, decrease pain and improve function. Body alignment can be corrected by physiotherapy and exercise or if necessary, by custom fit orthotics.
A custom orthotic is a doctor prescribed device that fits inside your footwear and is made to adjust biomechanical disorders in the feet. It is made specifically for each patient’s foot and its function is to realign the foot with the leg.
At Sports Centre Physiotherapy we measure and fit for The Orthotic Group. A physiotherapist will take a history of your symptoms, physically examine your feet and legs for alignment and use the computerized gait analysis.
The computer gait analysis uses technology that consists of computerized weight bearing mapping of your feet and gives objective data relating to foot pressures that occur during walking and is used to determine if orthotics are necessary. The orthotics are then constructed based on the findings of the physical and computerized evaluation.