A compression hosiery garment includes a knit fabric including a first yarn and a second yarn knit in an alternating knit construction and having at least one course of the second yarn for each course of the first yarn. The first yarn includes a covered yarn with an elastic core, such as a soft modulus elastic core, and the second yarn includes an inelastic yarn. The alternating knit construction includes an inverse course shift, where the first yarn is knit with a first course height that is greater than a second course height of the second yarn.

A knit sock is integrally formed of a body yarn in circumferential courses and axial wales, and includes a foot portion having a heel and a toe, and an ankle portion joined to the foot portion and defining an open leg end of the sock. A first targeted compression zone is formed with the foot portion between the heel and the toe, and includes spaced-apart axial compression ridges extending axially outward from the heel at a first end of the first compression zone to a second end of the first compression zone. A second targeted compression zone is formed with the ankle portion between the heel and the open leg end of the sock, and includes spaced-apart axial compression ridges extending axially outward from the heel at a first end of the second compression zone to a second end of the second compression zone.

A knit sock includes a foot portion having an upper instep area and a lower sole area integrally knit of a body yarn in circumferential courses and axial wales. The lower sole area defines inner and outer arch regions. The inner arch region incorporates a targeted compression zone adapted to reside generally adjacent an inner arch of a wearer's foot. The compression zone includes axially extending compression ridges of variable length spaced apart from a top of the compression zone to a bottom of the compression zone. When the sock is worn, a compression force applied by the foot portion within the targeted compression zone is greater than the compression force in directly adjacent areas of said foot portion.

Aspects herein are directed to a knit sock having a leg portion and an integrally knit ankle welt extending around a circumference of the leg portion and positioned at a lower end of the leg portion. The knit sock further includes an integrally knit tab located at a back aspect of the ankle welt.

Aspects herein are directed to a knit structure used to form a knit article where the knit structure can be adjusted to provide zoned cushioning, zoned insulation, zoned fit, zoned permeability/breathability features, and/or zoned tactile feedback features. The knit structure has a repeating pattern of a first number of knit courses having a first yarn knit with a first basic knit stitch and a second number of knit courses, where within each knit course of the second number of knit courses, the first yarn is knit in a repeating pattern having a first number of knit stitches knit with a second basic knit stitch and a second number of float stitches knit with a float stitch to form float areas.

An orthopedic precast comprises a knitted shell portion and a knitted flexible portion. The precast is positioned about a limb or other mold, and heat or other hardening agent is used to harden the shell portion, while retaining flexibility in the flexible portion. Contemplated hardening agents include light, heat, and chemical polymerizing agents. In some embodiments the shell portion includes threads or yarns comprising a thermoplastic, which is then hardened by heating the thermoplastic sufficiently to at least partially melt, and thereby fuse together some of the threads or yarns, and then cooling to ambient temperature. In other embodiments, the precast is contained in a bag or other airtight container, along with a self-heating composition that is triggered to release heat upon contact with oxygen. In still other embodiments, the precast includes a prepolymer of other polymerizable composition, which is polymerized by effective application of light, heat, and/or chemical agent(s).

Garments having active and passive knitted rows can provide desired levels of compression. Garments made of active and passive knitted rows can provide dynamic levels of compression with respect to both location and over time to address a variety of conditions.

A knit sock includes a foot portion having an upper instep area and a lower sole area integrally knit of a body yarn in circumferential courses and axial wales. The lower sole area defines inner and outer arch regions. The inner arch region incorporates a targeted compression zone adapted to reside generally adjacent an inner arch of a wearer's foot. The compression zone includes axially extending compression ridges of variable length spaced apart from a top of the compression zone to a bottom of the compression zone. When the sock is worn, a compression force applied by the foot portion within the targeted compression zone is greater than the compression force in directly adjacent areas of said foot portion.

A compression garment, for example, a sock, formed of a knitted fabric that includes an elastomer compression inlay yarn introduced into a predetermined first selection of needles on a first knitting machine finger position and first and second pattern yarns introduced into a predetermined second selection of needles on second and third knitting machine finger positions, the first selection of needles and the second selection of needles collectively defining a predetermined pattern. When the predetermined second selection of needles is raised to take on the first and second pattern yarns, the elastomer compression inlay yarn deflects predetermined ones of the second selection of needles radially inwardly to define an annular space into which the pattern yarns are dropped in an offset relation to the elastomer compression inlay yarn. The first and second pattern yarns are plated to respective outer and inner surfaces of the fabric, and the elastomer compression yarn are inlaid to the inner surface of the fabric.

A compression garment that is easy to slip on/off comprising a compression knitted piece comprising at least one stitch ground yarn and at least one elastic yarn, in particular inlaid yarn, and at least one hairy yarn knitted into the knitted piece so that the knitted piece has, according to all or part of its inner face and of its outer face, hairs projecting from the latter, said hairs being configured so as to be oriented in the direction in which the knitted piece is slipped on and/or off.