A short study of a new device for equino-varus deformities of hemiplegic patients (especially of a shoe horu brace).

Abstract

It is a most serious problem for a hemiplegic patient in convalescence, how to minimize the lost functions (i.e. how to regain the possibly good ADL). Among the problems to be thought for the lost functions, it is a most difficult and important one, how to prevent the equino-varus deformity of a parahysed foot to expect the restoration from inability to walk. For the purpose, many sorts of braces and adequate programs of the exercise had been prescribed and performed during hospitalization. As show in many investigations, however, we know the many patients who lost the regained functions of walking at all, by falling into disuse of their braces, soon after discharge from hospitals, because of the heaviness and some other troubles of the given braces themaelves. To resolve such problems, we attempted to devise a new shoe horn brace from "Below Knee Polypropylen Orthoses" (as "the semimanufactured goods" from USMC Co., USA), which could be remodelled by heats and obtained statisfactory results, both in easy application and in good walking pattern. Its advantages could be thought to be as follows; 1) Very highter weight (about 120 g.) as compared with usual shoe type SLB (about 1,000 g). 2) easiness to put on and off. 3) to be permitted to walk in the houses of old Japanese fashion (i.e. to walk on "Tatami"), and easiness to put a shoe directly over it, to go out. 4) to be cosmetically acceptable. 5) easiness of washing to keep it always clean. Further, we can saved troubles, such as the cast modifications and several-times checking. Also, we can obtain the materials easily as "the semimanufactured goods". Remained problems, we must follow up, are the tolerance of the materials and the influences upon the ankle ROM in long time usages.