PRO

I broke my neck of femur in my left leg - in fact there were four breaks (comminuted). Naturally, the hospital gave me a NHS set of grey crutches and sent me packing, after a week in hospital. The NHS crutches were hell to use, as I have Osteoarthritis in my hands. I was quick to discover NHS and social aftercare, is very poor and a substitute for the NHS crutches wasn't going to happen, unless I bought them myself. I Googled "alternative crutches" and up came a YouTube video on Kmina. Having watched the video in chronic pain, I decided to invest in a pair. These crutches have to be bought singularly, left side and right side - two separate orders. They are shipped from Spain and take about a week to arrive. At first, these crutches were a little strange to get use to, after having used the NHS ones. This is, in part, because you can move a lot further in one stride. The standard NHS crutch means putting all the pressure on the the palms of your hands and wrists - this is painful and damaging. By contrast, the Kmina crutches have a totally different approach - all the pressure goes on your forearms and elbows, with the hands used to soley move the crutches. In addition, the forearm cradles are inset with neoprene (a squidgy / foamy substance, similar to memory foam. The handles have thick foam overlays. But that's not all, because the forearm cradles are also sprung, allowing for shock absorbtion, making the whole experience of use, even more comfortable. It took me a couple of days to get use to them, especially, as I was non weight bearing on my left leg, but when I mastered them, I became more and more confident and very happy I had invested in them. I'm 6'1" and my only reservation is that they are not quite tall enough, meaning I have to slightly lean forward when using them. An extra hole, probably would have remedied that. That said, they can be altered to suit most people's heights. Assembly is reasonably easy, but you need some finger strength to insert the the curved clips into the holes and you need some dexterity to do it with accuracy (matching the holes). Assembling the handle tubes into the cradles involves securing a wing nut, which, again, is relatively easy for someone with DIY skills. The wing nuts are plastic and the thread on one of mine was not allowing total tightness, so I bought a packet of them from amazon and refitted the damaged one, which is now perfect. The bases of the crutches have large, wide spread, circular rubber feet, that afford much more stability than NHS issue crutches. The feet also flex, giving you better grip on surfaces. I've used them in the rain as well and stability and grip is unaffected. Standing for longish periods with these crutches is fine, as your arms take the weight, not your hands. Walking with them can either be partial bearing, or non weight bearing on one leg. You will, of course, move faster, if you non weight bear, as you will propel yourself further distance with each stroke. As with all steps, you should exercise caution. But these crutches are excellent on steps, as your arms do most of the work. Strength wise, I've not had any issues with these crutches and I find them robust. I weigh 85kgs. The maximum weight permitted is 100kgs on each crutch. In terms of storage, these crutches take up more space than the NHS ones and so, some thought needs to go into where to stow them in different situations. I find in cafés / restaurants, the floor, under seats / tables is best. On buses and trains, I hold them at 45 degrees. Are they worth the money? Categorically yes. They're a God send, compared to NHS issue ones. You'll also find greater stability on public transport too.

Perfect for hybermobile Ehlers Danlos syndrome. Very supportive and sturdy but I feel like you do need a bit of upper body strength. Really nice design and finish. Very easy to put together and to customise height of crutch easily. I feel very stable using them so anyone with HEDs go for it.

Great piece of tool for support, of my back, arms and hands. Which can be affected by long term use if crutches. I've been using for over a year since hip surgery. But remain with Kyphoscoliosis in my back. Really great support. Only gripe is it's very heavy and cuff clamp support cud be a bit bigger, maybe??? Not sure!!! As when I'm wearing outwear, it's too bulky to hold, and keep slipping off. Don't know how I'll manager during winter, when wearing more bulky attire. Still, really a great product.

I absolutely love these crutches! - I’ve had several operations on my knee over the past few years and I have always struggled with sore hands/wrists when using the standard crutches (I’m not the lightest person!). I’ve tried various tricks in the past - after my surgery 2 years ago I bought some pretty good gel/grip covers which helped, but eventually nothing stops your hands/wrists from hurting. However, these completely remove all of that! - I found them very quick/intuitive to start using and (after significant usage) I am still completely pain free - these are just so comfortable to use. Yes, they are a little bulkier than standard crutches (so a little more fiddly getting in/out or a car), but that’s a very small trade-off to not being in pain when using them all the time! I was just remembering this morning that after previous surgeries I did everything I could to avoid using the crutches (to escape the hand/wrist pain) and so I did a lot more hopping around, which then ended up hurting my good leg/knee/ankle. Now, I am happily using these crutches all of the time! I bought a pair (the left + right versions), which cost me £158 on Amazon - yes, that is a lot of money, but it was totally worth it and I have zero regrets about spending the money. Hopefully I won’t need these for much longer, but I will either keep them (for future operations) or see if family/friends could use them - these are much better than any other crutches or walking aids/sticks that I’ve ever seen!

Very stable and comfortable. Did not stay on my forearms which made it very difficult to walk with them.

Very sturdy and takes the weight off shoulder, very well made but heavy and a nuisance when out as very big item to lean against chair, has been nicknamed metal detector, but it's a really helpful aid!

It is sturdy you just need to get use to it. But it is good

This crutch really does help take pressure off my wrist compared to normal crutch and is mostly easy to use. It is quite heavy however and I find myself switching back to normal (nhs!) crutch as I don't have the strength to use it. It looks smart and is well made with good suspension. It is expensive but worth it if you have the strength to wield it!