DonJoy Reaction Web Knee Support Brace with Compression Undersleeve: Blue, Medium/Large

I shredded my knee a year ago and it is continuing to heal. I’m not sure it will ever heal completely. I ripped the kneecap right off sideways and everything that was holding it was torn. The knee literally went backwards 4 inches. That is the wrong direction to be going backwards! An orthopedic surgeon gave me this brace and it has been by far the best brace I’ve used. Due to the very high price, I have attempted to use at least 20 different styles of braces since. That has been a huge waste of time and money.And in the end, I lost my original brace on a trip. And I’ve ended up ordering two more of these $80 braces. The price is absolutely ridiculous and I feel taken advantage of by the price.But I love these braces. They make me feel more stable than any other others. I highly recommend this lightweight brace. It keeps my kneecap in the spot where it needs to be, and the height of the brace makes my leg feel much more stable. When my knee was at its worst in the beginning this was not nearly enough support by itself. I think I was on crutches for about nine months. The brace rolls up compactly for storage or travel. I washed this in the washing machine all of the time and hang it to dry.

I ordered this brace after having meniscus surgery on my knee 5 months ago. I was hoping it would provide support for me while trying to get back into activities like hiking, biking, and skiing. I measured my leg according to the instructions and ordered a size large. After the brace arrived, I tried it on with the compression sleeve. It was so tight that I could not wear it. I tried the brace without the sleeve and it fit ok. It has to be strapped on tight to work properly, which makes it less comfortable. I decided to try it on a mountain bike ride. I strapped it on and loaded my bike into my truck for a 15 minute drive to the trails. My leg was in pain by the time I arrived due to the brace. I rode around for about 2 minutes and the brace was very uncomfortable and did not perform as I was hoping. I took it offI think the problem is on the design. It seems like once the knee is flexed, it stretches the plastic until the knee is in the straight position. This does not allow partial flexion, which renders it useless for me and what I wanted to use it for.I ended up finding a better one made by 3m at my local cvs. I have worn it skiing multiple times and often forget it is there as it provides the support I want.I do not recommend this brace because in my opinion it is so uncomfortable that I do not want to wear it.

UPDATE:I did resolve the issue with Amazon and my surgeon ended up ordering me this brace for me and it was sold by the manufacturer and will hopefully be covered by my insurance company. I did get the next size up and now the hinges actually work (they couldn’t work with the brace from Amazon being too small).I don’t know how well this brace works for other issues, but the issue causing my pain is patellar maltracking which has developed over the years into arthritis. I first began having knee pain in 2016, I guess. I would think it would help with anything requiring kneecap support. It is the only brace that is able to give me pain relief and fits my kneecap.The biggest issue I see is that the size chart is not the same as on the manufacturer’s website. The manufacturer advised me to order one from them but they are more expensive. They then said to at least use their size chart if I order from Amazon. I will likely order from somewhere else altogether as Amazon seems to be telling me they are giving me a refund and it is not appearing. There was some confusion on my part about whether or not it fit after they initially refunded my money when it didn’t seem to fit and hurt as part of it digs into my knee. So I then tried using the sleeve and it helped with the pain from the brace so I thought since it was supporting my kneecap it fit me. I actually asked Amazon to charge me again as I didn’t want to use the brace after getting a refund being that it is so expensive. But I realized that the hinges need to be on the sides of my knee and instead they are just beside the kneecap and my legs are wider than a medium/large, so the hinges are not on the side of my knee. I then asked for the money back again and now I guess Amazon thinks I am changing my mind too much and I think the real issue is that they need to have the correct sizing information in the pictures. I would not recommend anyone buy this unless they check the manufacturer’s website first.

I ordered this brace for the second time. I have a torn meniscus and the brace provided by my Doctor was extremely uncomfortable. He suggested this one. The brace comes with a compression sleeve to wear under the brace if desired, but it is cooler without. The silicone webbing in the front breathes and has good airflow. The brace is easily adjustable with the two straps which hold with velcro very well. The brace has two side hinges for added knee stability which is a plus. Word of advice is to measure carefully and adjust up if close to the next size, as the compression sleeve runs small.

This thing is a life saver. Best knee brace I have gotten.