INTRODUCTION The floor reaction ankle-foot orthosis is commonly prescribed in the attempt to decrease knee flexion during the stance phase in the cerebral palsy (CP) gait. Reported information about this type of orthosis is insufficient. PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of clinically prescribed floor reaction ankle-foot orthosis on kinematic parameters of the hip,...

T he Hip-Abduction, KneeExtension Orthosis (HA, KE) is designed to aid in preventing or correcting deformities in spastic hip abductor and hamstring muscles when stretching and exercise do not suffice. Spasticity in this group of muscles is not uncommon in paraplegia or in other selected diseases of the central nervous system-for example, in multiple sclerosis. The orthosis consists of bila ter...

BACKGROUND This study was aimed to assess the effectiveness of a newly designed orthosis on knee contact forces in subjects with knee osteoarthritis (OA). MATERIAL AND METHODS Five patients with OA participated in the study. All had knee OA on the medial side according to the American College of Rheumatology criteria, medial knee pain and radiographic osteophyte on the medial side of knee joi...

OBJECTIVE This study examined the effect of commonly used long and short styles of commercially produced wrist extension orthoses on the activity of the proximal muscles of the shoulder and elbow and on wrist flexor and extensor muscle activity. METHOD While 17 women between 22 and 40 years of age (M = 26.6) performed a specified movement wearing each of the two styles of orthosis and without...

BACKGROUND Lateral epicondylitis is a common cause of pain and upper limb dysfunction. The use of counterforce straps for treatment of lateral epicondylitis is widespread. This kind of orthosis can be modified to have a greater effect on relieving pain by reducing tension on the origin of the extensor pronator muscles. OBJECTIVES To determine the immediate effects of a newly designed orthosis...

The effect of reciprocally linking the hip hinges of a hip-knee-ankle-foot orthosis on standing performance was studied in a comparative trial of the Advanced Reciprocating Gait Orthosis (ARGO) and an ARGO in which the Bowden cable was removed (A_GO). Six male subjects with spinal cord injury (SCI) at T4 to T12 level participated in the study, which was conducted using a single case experimenta...

The pain reducing effect of vibratory stimulation and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) as compared to aspirin and placebo was studied in 60 patients suffering myofascial or musculoskeletal pain. Vibratory stimulation at 20 Hz, 100 Hz and 200 Hz and two modes of TENS were used for peripheral stimulation. In 48 patients these modes of stimulation produced pain reduction. Out of ...

Gait disturbance, particularly freezing of gait (FOG), is a phenomenon that is common in Parkinson’s patients and significantly contributes to a loss of function and independence. Walking performance and number of freezing episodes have been known to respond favorably to sensory cues of different modalities. However, a topic that has so far barely been touched is how to resolve freezing episode...

BACKGROUND Breast implant displacement or rupture can cause aesthetic problems and serious medical complications. Activities with prone positioning and loading of the anterior chest wall, such as massage, chiropractic or osteopathic therapies may increase the risk of implant failure and can also cause discomfort in women with natural breast tissue. Here we test the effectiveness of a newly deve...

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a functional foot orthosis on the knee angle in the sagittal plane of college students in their 20s who had flatfoot. [Subjects and Methods] The subjects of this study were 20 college students diagnosed as having flatfoot. The variations of their knee angle (Q-angle) in the sagittal plane during the stance phase were measured usi...