Introduction
The DonJoy OA Adjuster™ 3 Knee Brace is a patient-ready knee osteoarthritis brace, clinically proven to off-load the knee and is ideally suited for active patients.
Knee braces like this one have been shown to improve walking distances in patients with osteoarthritis of the knee. Read on to discover what the video clip is all about!
Indications
• Moderate to severe
unicompartmental osteoarthritis
• Moderate to severe
ligament instabilities
• Post-operative rehabilitation
It is not suitable for patients with more than one compartment involved. It is great if you are considering an upper tibial or distal femoral osteotomy as a treatment for advanced OA in the yourger slim patient to delay knee arthroplasty.
Information on Ordering
How do you avoid a mistake when ordering for your patient? This product should be ordered after the doctor has made the measurements with you in clinic and then fitted and adjusted by the doctor at your next clinic visit to avoid mistakes in the process of off loading the correct affected side of the knee.
Choose the right size by marking the mid point of the patella with the patient standing in the schuss position. Measure the circumference of the thigh at 15cm above this point. Before you choose from the drop down list write down your patients indication (is the medial or lateral compartment affected) then the side and finally size before you even touch the drop down menu.
x=1=XS=33-39 cm
x=2=S=39-47 cm
x=3=M=47-53 cm
x=4=L=53-60 cm
x=5=XL=60-67 cm
x=6=XXL=67-75 cm
x=7=XXXL=75-81 cm
Tip on the use of drop down menus
After you have chosen, click off the menu and unbold the choice before you roll your mouse wheel because you might inadvertantly change your choice with the roll of the wheel.
Innovations
• Nano MAG™ technology on the off-loading side, combined with the durability of the aluminium frame, provides ligtweight function with optimum strength
• Patient adjustment key for clinically proven - Donjoy's Adjuster technology provides adjustable off-loading with the highest level of condylar separation
• New Bi-axial low profile hinges hinge technology
• Light weight - 21 oz
• Integrated daily load adjustment
• Commended for Ease-of-Use by the Arthritis Foundation
• Arthritis friendly features
• 4-Points -of-Leverage system - provides clinically proven ligament stability combined with a double upright design to allow a contoured personal fit for all levels of activity
• 20° of varus or valgus range
• Available in 7 sizes, XS - XXXL
• 1 year warranty on frame and hinge, 6 month warranty on soft goods
Missed Meniscal Tears
OrthopaedicsandTrauma.com asked John Hardy why he recommends the Donjoy OA Adjustor as an off the shelf and cost effective brace for patients with Osteoarthritis of the knee. John is a Consultant Knee Surgeon in London and Bristol in the UK.
John told OrthopaedicsandTrauma.com " When assessing the patient presenting with knee pain the first thing any doctor must consider is whether the pain is due to a missed or neglected meniscal tear".
John said: "In my practice the commonest reason to undertake total knee replacement surgery is a patient with knee pain from advanced osteoarthritis because 10 years earlier the patient's unsuspecting GP has said to the patient with a degenerate meniscal tear.. "What do you expect when you are getting older" and nothing was done about the meniscal tear.
John said that a patient presenting with spontaneous onset knee pain over the age of 45 years should have a meniscal tear causing arthritis excluded before considering conservative mangement as the simple meniscal tear could progress to arthritis". "I do not leave patients on a waiting list when I have seen a patient with an unstable meniscal tear as I think time is of the essence for this condition". "The analogy is that if your patient had a stone in their shoe you would not recommend they wait 18 weeks before removing it. By then you would have more than the stone to contend with and the simple procedure to remove a stone becomes a complex one to debride an ulcer!" " If there is no way of offering surgery within days then an offloading brace or a crutch might help stave off the degenerate change. However, there is nothing better than a stitch in time!".
John said that in his practice the off loading brace is indicated for diagnostic purposes in the young patient with degenerate changes after partial menesectomy/chondroplasty and in the older patient for symptom relief if it is not yet acceptable to undertake the risks of major surgery like total knee replacement".
John said" I also prescribe the Donjoy off loading braces in patients who have walked on a meniscal tear for longer than desired and caused some degenerate change but not arthritis. This is to give the femoral condyle the best chance of recovery once the unstable part of the meniscus has been repaired or removed".
OrthopaedicsandTrauma.com have reviewed the evidence that an off loading brace is effective in the treatment of symptoms from unicompartmental osteoarthritis of the knee" One of the recent small studies demonstrated that of five braces tested the Donjoy and another brand had the only braces that demonstrated effective offloading of the affected arthritis medial compartment. (Dennis DA, Komistek RD, Nadaud MC, Mahfouz M. Evaluation of off-loading braces for treatment of unicompartmental knee arthrosis. J Arthroplasty. 2006 Jun;21(4 Suppl 1):2-8.)
Also click through to: (Richards JD, Sanchez-Ballester J, Jones RK, Darke N, Livingstone BN. A comparison of knee braces during walking for the treatment of osteoarthritis of the medial compartment of the knee. J Bone Joint Surg Br. 2005 Jul;87(7):937-9.)