The Alaska Bear Knee Brace is construct of ethylene-vinyl acetate or EVA which is soft, breathable, and very flexible material. It is an open patella design and features four, two on each side, metal springs for added support. The open patella design keeps the brace centered on the knee cap while a total of three Velcro straps and a total of four rows of medical grade silicon keep it in place. The silicon which is made up of two squiggly lines at the top and bottom, do a great job of preventing the brace from sliding while moving a lot.
Having a torn meniscus has caused me to use many knee braces over the year to help with the pain and add support to my knee. I have tried almost every style of over the counter brace available and have always gone back to an open patella design, and prefer one with metal springs or hinges. Most braces that use hinges that I have tried, use springs that are to soft and do not actually provided added support but the braces with hinges are bulk, so there is a constant trade off.
The Alaska Bear brace is soft to the touch and the material is very flexible. The springs they used are of a medium strength but since there are two side by side they provide plenty of support. Thanks to the use of three Velcro straps instead of the usual two found on many braces, as well as the silicon strips, the brace doesn’t budge even when your knee is extremely sweaty. Because of the great fit, good support especially for its size, and the quality build, I highly recommend this brace.
If you are interested in this knee brace it can be found here.