A 2013 study examined the long effects after ACL surgery of using a knee brace versus using no brace. The researchers placed the participants into 2 groups. One group used a brace after surgery while the other did not. Four years after surgery, the researchers measured ACL ligament integrity, pain levels, and x-ray pictures in each patient who had surgery. They found that there was no difference in ligament integrity between groups.
There was one significant difference between the brace group when compared to the no-brace group. The patients who did not use a knee brace after surgery reported less pain during sports or heavy physical work activites. There also was no reported injuries in the no-brace group as compared to the brace group.
What Does the Knee Brace Do?
After you have ACL repair surgery, it takes time for the graft that the surgeon used to reconstruct your ACL to heal. During the healing process, which takes anywhere from 8-10 weeks, the new ligament is in danger of rupturing. Rupture of the ACL graft may occur if forces are placed on your knee that the graft cannot tolerate.
Wearing a knee brace after ACL surgery is thought to protect the graft as it is healing. The brace helps to control the motion of your knee and limit the amount of range of motion around your knee. This is thought to help decrease force through the ACL graft and protect it while it heals.
Source: Mayr, H. O., et al. "Brace or no-brace after ACL graft? Four-year results of a prospective clinical trial." Knee Surg Sports Truamtol Arthrosc. June 2013.
