Cho-Pat Dual Action Double-Layer Adjustable Knee Strap, Pain Relief for Chondromalacia, Osgood Schlatter’s, Tendonitis, and Meniscus Tears, XX-Large

I bought this knee brace to relieve problems I was having with my knee. And boy did it help!*** I have multiple knee issues, but I will discuss the problems this has helped me with.***I have a tipped kneecap; it does not track straight in the groove. That caused pain climbing stairs from time to time. I have had this issue for many years. But recently I started having pain in the area at the top of the kneecap and the tendon above it that connects my quads to the kneecap. I would have sharp pain when moving my leg out while sitting. Then the same pain when pulling my leg back in. This was a horrible pain. Once it started, it did not stop. I mean, it happened every time I moved my leg forward or back. This was for about a two-week time frame. At the same time, my thigh muscles just above my knee swelled up and felt tight. I took anti-inflammatories three times a day, stretched my quads, iced them, heated them. You name it, I tried it. Tumeric too. Every kind of cream I could get my hands on. Nothing helped. I never had a relief in my swollen tight thigh muscles, not even after sleeping all night. I woke up just as swollen as when I went to bed.I did some research on the internet to see what was causing my thighs to swell. I noticed I had some discomfort in the tendon I mentioned. I started massaging it, but with no relief. I because convinced something having to do with that tendon was causing my problem. My research led me to a knee strap. I felt an added benefit would be keeping my kneecap tracking correctly in the groove, so I thought it was worth a try.I knew of knee straps, because my hubby wore one many eons ago when he was a runner. He had an old Cho-pat strap that we still had, but way to small for me now. I was focussed on a single strap, because I did not know they had this double strap.Bottom line, how it helped me:I wore this strap for the first time during my 10 hour work shift. I sit in a work vehicle for large amounts of time throughout the shift, and this was where I experienced the pain when moving my leg in and out. And who can sit in a car for a length of time but not move your legs from time to time? That pain virtually disappeared, as long as the two straps were placed correctly and strapped down tight enough. It did not take long to figure that out. The straps sit on top of the upper and lower ligaments/tendons of the kneecap. This was an immediate relief for me!I no longer felt pain going down the stairs. That was amazing. I had less discomfort climbing stairs with the brace, though I only tried a few steps due to my own fear.I had no pain or discomfort at all while wearing this brace. For me, that is the biggest battle: wearing something that helps, but drives you crazy.But the biggest surprise I had was when I woke up the text morning after I had worn the brace for my whole shift. My lower thigh muscles (just above the kneecap) were CONSIDERABLY less swollen!!! WHO-HOO!!!!!!! I mean, they were barely swollen. Most of the tightness gone. I wore it on my next shift. I had the same results. Two mornings in a row my muscles were not as swollen and tight. I stopped taking anti-inflammatories right away.I have only had this strap for a little over a week, and I have no swelling or stiffness AT ALL! I'm still off the ibuprofen pills. I wear the strap on my days off when I feel like it, but it doesn't' seem like I need it as much when I'm just sitting around in my lazy boy chair.I highly recommend it if you have a tipped knee cap (mal-tracking), and if you have problems with your thigh muscles swelling.I don't know how or why it helps with the swelling, but it is obviously related to the upper tendon. For some reason, the tendon rubbed something raw in my muscles. I'm guessing my kneecap tracking properly helps with this problem. This part of the item description is what got my attention: "Reduced patellar subluxation and reduced quadricep misalignment under the surface of the kneecap."I would add that figuring out what size to get could be a problem. I'm overweight with fat legs, so I bought the XXL size. It is too big. The top strap, which is longer than the lower strap, measures about 25 inches long. The lower strap is just a little bit longer than 23 inches.If I buy another one, I'm not sure if I should get an XL, or go with the LG. I can still wear it, I just have the excess strap flapping in the wind (see my pictures). If i'm wearing shorts, I either let them flap, or clamp down the excess. I wore a dress to church while wearing the strap, so I had to clamp down the excess. I am not able to wear them with my snug fitting jeans. Sweats are no problem.I am hoping you can see the velcro strips in the pictures I posted, as well as the plastic tubing on the inside part. There is a sleeve that the plastic tubing slides into. Like another reviewer said, these tubes can be removed so you can wash the brace.

Six months ago I severely twisted my right knee. After cortisone and ongoing exercise, that knee was still somewhat stiff and painful. Three months ago, while favoring my right knee, I was forced to climb the huge staircase from the lower level to the second level of the Miami Airport, because the escalator was broken. The next day, my left knee was in crisis. Fast forward...xrays, MRI, result in bones of left knee having collapsed, as well as torn meniscus and a plica fold in the tissue. My ortho recommended aggressive exercise, which I am doing. I had purchased a Cho Pat dual action knee support earlier for my right knee, and found that it was quite helpful. I aldo had tried full coverage knee braces, knee wraps, and patella straps. The latter helped some, but not as much as the dual straps of this brace. Finally, after trying everything else on my left knee, I bought a second Cho Pat dual band brace. I have found that it helps meadureably with the left knee as well. Note:full coverage braces and wraps tended to create warmth. My knees had swelling and I needed to ice them down repeatedly during the day. So the full coversge stuff was undoing the rffrcts of the ice. With these, it is easy to ice down the knees without removing the braces. My knees are very slowly improving. The exercise regime is working, but I've a long way to go. Meanwhile, the braces are also helping me to be sble tonwalk with some semblance of normalcy and a great reduction in pain due to the movement within my knees while walking.UPDATE: I only used the brace for a brief while, then my knees stabilized and I needed no braces. Now, several years later, started having a problem with my patella slipping around. The single strap works, well, but the dual strap design of the cho pat works even better. However, I found that the cho pat keeps slipping. The top strap has no reason to stay fixed when the area just below it is less in diameter. So it simply slides down, winds up right on top of the kneecap. I have tried on bare skin, using lotions to make my dry skin more "sticky". Works for a while, but as a few hours go by, it slips. On the outside of jeans with spandex the material is soft, and too slippery, so the top slides down. It wants to go down, no matter high tightly it is pulled. Needs that sticky anti slip stuff on the inside of the strap.

My orthopedic surgeon recommended this exact knee support after a knee replacement, to be used ONLY when exercising (pedaling a bike) because my knee cap seems to move around a bit. It doesn't solve the issue completely, but it is way better than my other braces I tried when pedaling. I also wear it when snow-blowing to avoid twisting the knee when I turn - it has proven to be a big help for that. I've been losing significant weight so just ordered my third (smaller) support because they work well for me.

I purchased this knee brace based on quite a few recommendations that I read on backpacking sites regarding knee support for arthritis. I have a cheap $20 drugstore brace for my bad knee and was hoping for something better. No doubt that knee braces are as unique as the person and their specific condition. I purchased two of these. I'll keep my old brace for my bad knee and use one of these to perhaps forestall issues with my not-too-bad other knee. In the Amazon comments, several people asked about what size to get if their leg measurements were in between sizes. They suggested getting the larger size, which I did. My advice would be to get the smaller one. By the time I cinch down that larger one, the Velcro doesn't have full contact and I end up with about 2 inches of an annoying flap sticking outUPDATE: Medi-Dyne had me try one with the smaller size (see their response below. This fits MUCH better, so I'd ignore some of the advice on these reviews. i.e. if your measurements are in between, get the smaller size. Now that I can snug it up, and it provides far more support. Raising my review to 4 stars for both the improved fit and especially for the customer service... so RARE these days