医疗袜子(also known as软管, especially in a historical context) are close-fitting, variously elasticgarmentscovering the leg from the foot up to the knee or possibly part or all of thethigh。长袜的颜色，设计和transparency。Today, stockings are primarily worn for fashion andaesthetics, usually in association with mid-length裙子。

By analogy, the term “stocking” is also used to describe a type of马标记in which the white coloring extends from the horse’s hoof to just above the knee.

Stockings are still sometimes preferred to连裤袜for a number of reasons. These may include the perception that stockings, and the associated use of吊袜带,lace, high fashion,appliqué和大腿的曝光，比连裤袜更令人愉悦，或性吸引力和诱人。

与裤子相比，尼龙丝袜和连裤袜都分享了快干的优势。如果他们被毁，备件也很容易携带。如果梯形图，它们可以更换为“一个时间”，它提供了紧身衣的成本优势。

However, stockings do have a drawback in colder weather, because more skin is exposed to the cold compared to pantyhose. Also, pantyhose do not require garters and garter belts, and do not need to be adjusted as much, whilst also leaving a smoother line under形状衣服。