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By Mayo Clinic staffYou may be interested in a knee brace if you experience pain and instability in your knee due to osteoarthritis. Knee braces can't treat osteoarthritis by themselves, but when combined with other treatment options, such as medications and physical therapy, they may be useful in certain situations, such as:
- Osteoarthritis that affects one side of your knee. Unicompartmental osteoarthritis may occur in people who have a natural body alignment that causes bowed legs or knock-knees. This alignment causes one side of your knee to bear more weight. Over time, osteoarthritis may develop on that side of your knee.
- People who don't want to undergo surgery, such as knee replacement. A knee brace can't substitute for surgery, but it may offer osteoarthritis symptom relief if you don't want to undergo surgery. Some people simply want to try everything before undergoing surgery. Others may be considered too young for joint replacement surgery, which is typically reserved for older adults.
- People who can't undergo surgery. If other health complications make it risky for you to undergo surgery, you may consider a knee brace to help you cope with osteoarthritis symptoms.
