Results demonstrate that wearing the TCU lowers quadriceps muscle effort and internal knee extension moments during a chair rise and lower movement as well as a stair descent (Figure 2). These findings are important because both of these measures have been shown to contribute to patellofemoral (PF) and tibiofemoral (TF) joint unloading. The results therefore corroborate earlier research demonstrating the capacity of a TCU to produce PF and TF joint unloading.2
This study is the first to capture the effect of wearing the TCU on quadriceps muscle activity in knee OA patients and provides strong evidence supporting the proposed mechanism of unloading the knee joint. Participants reported lower levels of pain while wearing the Levitation brace, suggesting that there is an immediate effect of the TCU on knee pain during these weight-bearing activities.