Effectiveness first, price second
Quality should always be your biggest concern when purchasing therapeutic diabetic socks and compression hosiery as they will provide optimum effectiveness and durability.
While the price of diabetic socks and compression hosiery is higher in comparison to conventional socks and hosiery, the therapeutic value they provide for serious problems that are often associated with poor circulation in the legs and feet makes them priceless.
America, Germany, Switzerland and Canada are the major producers of diabetic socks and compression hosiery. Most product their goods inside their countries but depending on the condition of their economies they design and then outsource the manufacturing of their products to countries such as China, Pakistan, India, Thailand, Vietnam, etc. In such cases typically they have a company representative who maintains a high level quality control.
Similar products that are designed and produced in China and third-world countries countries are much lower priced than their Western competitors, however, most are poorly constructed and made from cheaper materials and fibers.
Below is a list of some of the most reputable brand names. All are available online either from the manufacturer, a distributor, retailer, pharmacies and medical supply stores.
Diabetic socks:
- Footsmart
- Futuro
- Diastar
- Drymaxsocks
- Footprint
- Jobst
- MediVen
- Physicians’ Choice
- Therafirm
- Silipos
- Thorlos
- Truform
- Wigwam
Compression Garments:
- MediVen
- Jobst
- Sigvaris
- AmesWalker
- CW-X
- Juzo
- T.E.D. hose
- Zensah
Brands recommended by most podiatrist and physicians:
Jobst: Jobst, a division of BSN Medical, has been the number one physician recommended manufacturer of support hosiery for years.
The company offers a complete line of women’s Medical hosiery to include the Jobst Opaque, UltraSheer, CasualWear, ActiveWear, Casual, SensiFoot diabetic socks, Relief hosiery, and patterned pant line hosiery.
For men their lines include Therapeutic LegWear, ActiveWear athletic socks, and Sensifoot diabetic socks.
Sigvaris: Sigvaris, founded in Switzerland, has become one of the most respected manufacturers of compression stockings for women by both podiatrist and physicians.
Their product line includes the 770 Truly Transparent series of sheer compression knee highs, support thigh highs and the 230 Cotton series waist high featuring a unique cotton blend; the 860 Select Comfort series, the Support Therapy (formerly Delilah) line of 15-20mmHg, the 761 Sculptors pantyhose, the 960 Value Line series.
Sigvaris also produces a full line of compression leg sleeves for the treatment of lymphedema.
Medi-USA: Their division of Mediven support stockings are of the highest quality.
Women’s product line: Mediven Elegance, Assure, Forte, Plus, and a new line of Sheer and Soft compression stockings.
Men’s support sock product line: Mediven Active, Patriot, Assure, Plus and Forte.
Juzo: Juzo is considered to be the leader in the lymphedema market. They provide some of the best compression stockings and compression arm and leg sleeves.
Women’s product: Juzo Hostess, Attractive, Attractive OTC, Soft 2000, Varin, Soft Striped, and Soft Diamond.
Men’s and women’s diabetic sock line: Silver Soft and Silver Sole.
For men Medi-USA’s feature include cotton ribbed, Soft Ribbed, Varin, and Silver Soft.
Men’s diabetic sock line: Soft 2000 and Silver Sole.
I strongly suggest that before you purchase any of the above products online make sure the site(s) you order from provides an image of the garment being sold, a list of its key features, a brief explanation of what the garment is made to treat, and if it’s important to you, where they are made (You may need to go to the manufacturer’s website to get that information or email the site’s customer service dept.)
I further suggest that if you do make an online purchase, inquire about the seller’s money back guarantee policy so that if you are not completely satisfied you can return the product(s).
The bottom line is that purchasing the most reputable brands of diabetic socks and compression hosiery will guarantee you that they will be of the highest quality and if properly taken care of they will last much longer. As the old saying goes, you get what you pay for.
