The role of the knee brace in the prevention of anterior knee pain syndrome

Our prospective study evaluates the use of a knee brace with a silicon patellar support ring as a method of preventing anterior knee pain from developing in young persons undergoing strenuous physical exercise. We studied 60 young athletes, who qualified for a strenuous physical training course and who had not suffered from anterior knee pain previously. Twenty-seven subjects were in the brace group and 33 were in the nonbrace control group. The incidence of anterior knee pain syndrome increased with the intensity of exertion as the study progressed; i.e., subjects ran 6 km in the Ist week, gradually increasing each week up to 42 km/week at the 8th week. Yet, there was a significant reduction in the incidence of the syndrome at the end of the study in male athletes who had applied the braces before exercise sessions and in the brace group as a whole, compared with the control group. Prophylactic use of the brace, as described, did not reduce the ability of the athletes who wore braces to improve their physical fitness parameters in response to exercise. These data indicate that the use of a brace may be an effective way to prevent the development of anterior knee pain syndromes in persons participating in strenuous and intensive physical exercise.