4 Reasons to use a Knee Walker over Crutches

What is a Knee Walker? Is it the same thing as a Knee Scooter?

​At this point, you may or may not have heard of what a knee walker is, or you have seen a celebrity (Kevin Durant, John Tory, etc…) using one but don’t really know much about it outside of that. Well, for starters a knee walker is an alternative to crutches for anybody with a below-the-knee injury — most commonly ankle injuries. This can range from a simple ankle sprain all the way up to a more severe fracture. This device is deemed to be medically necessary whenever a patient requires full 100% off-loading of weight from their foot, however people also use it when there is only partial non-weight bearing required. This is what it looks like:

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How is it better than crutches?

1. Balance

One of the main benefits of using a knee walker over crutches is balance. It is quite easy to lose balance when on traditional crutches or even the iWalk Free 2.0 but this is very difficult on a knee walker — especially if you are using an All-Terrain Model like the one shown above.

2. Less Painful

Traditional crutches can cause a lot of pain in the under-arms and also in the wrists as this is where all the weight gets allocated to. For people who are not in optimal physical condition, this can make using traditional crutches almost impossible. With the knee walker, the weight is allocated from between the knee to the ankle, primarily along your shin, which is able to handle the weight much better without causing the patient to be in pain.

3. Speed & Maneuverability

With a knee walker, you can maneuver around tight spaces and be able to go faster — a lot faster than you could on traditional crutches. With the wheels, you may find yourself able to go even faster than everyone else, rather than much slower than everyone else on traditional crutches. One common concern is managing tight spaces, but our knee walkers are designed to be extremely maneuverable, even in tight condominium spaces in core cities, such as Downtown Toronto.

4. Full Off-Load

​Unlike crutches, it is extremely difficult to accidentally put weight on your injured foot on a knee walker. This is because it is supported and raised, whereas with traditional crutches the injured leg has to be manually kept off the ground, a process than can be very tiring for a lot of people. This is extremely important in cases where 100% off-loading is critical. This can be for issues like fractures, or even diabetic foot ulcers.
As a matter of fact, there is a study that shows 88% of people prefer knee walkers over traditional crutches.

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1071100716659748?journalCode=faib

If you are looking for a solution while you heal from your fracture, sprain, or diabetic foot ulcer, give us a shout. We have locations in Toronto, Ottawa, Calgary, and BC. We also ship for free across Canada (yes, for rentals as well).