Most sports injuries involve the knees, wherein it is often torn the wrong way during plays or when the player made a strong landing or impact on the court or when something hits the knee very hard and with force. In most of these cases, the use of protective products to lessen injury and reduce swelling immediately follows and this is often done with bandages. These are considered knee stabilizers to protect the knee from further damage as well as support the knees to regain its strength and heal naturally.
After an injury, knee bandages are used for protection especially those cohesive ones as these bandages stick to themselves, thereby offering a big help in reducing the swelling. These are also known as Ace bandages, and when used, will serve as a reminder to the injured person that he has an injury along that area of the body in order to avoid further injury. This will provide compression to the knee joint reducing the amount of fluid in the area and will therefore decrease the swelling in the knee. These also help to eliminate pain in the area, especially when used in conjunction with ice and anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen, acetaminophen and naproxen. With its use, time is needed to heal the injury and at the same time minimizing cost is afforded to the injured person.
Commonly sold in drug stores and pharmacy as well as in grocery stores and value markets, these are also commonly retailed in online stores. They range in size from 2 inches to 6 inches in width. It should be applied while ensuring that the skin is dry and very clean to avoid infection. It should be carefully rolled below the knee joint to cover the area which needs the most compression keeping it close to the knee as much as possible and secured in place with the use of clips, but cloth tape can also serve the purpose.
It is important that the bandage will be applied smoothly as wrinkles can lead to further skin injury. Additionally, this should not be worn tightly since it may also lead to skin discoloration, decrease in sensation and temperature as well as increase the pain felt. If the pain and swelling worsens, it is best to seek a doctor’s evaluation.
Knee bandages can still be recycled for future use when it remains clean after several uses. Easy removal is done by starting above the knee and wrap in the opposite direction from the direction in which it was first applied when rolled.