Abstract: An appliance for supporting and/or protecting body portions comprises a pair of substantially rigid sheet-like members adapted to engage against predetermined spaced portions of the body of a wearer. The sheet-like members are coupled together at one end by means of a relatively large expanse of elastic material and are detachably connected together at the other end also by means of elastic material, the resulting structure encircling a body portion. This construction permits substantial contraction and expansion of the encircled body portion without substantially restraining the encircled body portion from expansion.