Knee Bracing (for unstable knee joints)
If you have “wobbly” knees due to lax ligaments, it causes excessive, uneven contact between the knee joint surfaces and can make osteoarthritis worse. In this case, it is a good idea to wear a knee brace when you are active during the day. Check your local drugstore for basic knee braces.
For a patella (knee cap) that is not tracking properly, wear a patellar brace and/or apply kinesiotape.
If you want to use kinesiotape, first check which side your patella shifts to as you bend your knee. To do it, sit on a chair, affected leg extended out in front, and grasp your knee cap with your fingertips. Slowly bend your knee to 90 degrees and feel which side it deviates to.
Proper kinesiotaping of a left patella that is tracking laterally towards the outer side of the knee.
Let’s say your LEFT patella deviates laterally, or out to the side. Cut a 24″ long piece of 2″ tape. Stick the bottom end about 9″ below the back of your knee on your calf at an angle of 45 degrees inward and with your knee straight, continue to wrap the tape around the LEFT (lateral) side of your patella PULLING INWARDS slightly to establish corrective tension, then continue wrapping towards the inner thigh and around the back of your thigh so that the top end is about 9″ above the back of your knee. Make sure there is no slack as you wrap it around your patella. This will prevent it from mis-tracking to the left.
NEXT: Myofascial Release
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