Ankle Foot Orhtosis with Taping for Clubfoot Treatment

• Main Authors: I-Lum Lin, 林意倫
• Other Authors: Liang-Wey Chang
• Format: Others
• Language: en_US
• Published: 2004
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/67426107468426385888

碩士 === 國立臺灣大學 === 醫學工程學研究所 === 92 === Talipes equinovarus also called clubfoot is a common birth deformity of the foot, and boys are affected twice as often as girls. The symptoms of clubfoot are forefoot adductus, heel varus, equines, and eversion; if the worse, it accompanies with cavus and claw toes. In order to achieve the principle, early treat on early stage, we applied forces on infants’ musculoskeletal structure and stimulated its normal growth for correcting clubfoot, as musculoskeletal system had not completely developed. In this research, we cooperated with orthopedists to correct clubfeet. In the early phase, orthopedists traditionally treated by surgery or serial casting. After that by the step, patients’ need orthoses to maintain their normal position to prevent deformities becoming worse, and we applied them solid ankle-foot orthoses (solid AFOs) with over-corrective position made in NRERC and taping technique. And we followed up patients 0.5~1.5 years to observe the effect on solid ankle-foot orthoses (solid AFOs). Although there were many kinds of treatments, such as surgery and conservative treatment, our concern was to consider traditional ankle-foot orthoses in this research. Generally speaking, the basis of the formal ankle-foot orthoses on clubfoot was Dens Browns splint, and we developed it and made new solid ankle-foot orthoses. We assessed patients who accepted daily using solid AFOs after a period of time and self-examined in order to improve existing conservative treatment. In this study the main stress fell on two points, one was the effect of the treatment and the other was the satisfactions and opinions of the patients. In respect of the effect of the treatment, we followed up clubfoot patients by physical examination, such as the range of motion of joints, static plantar pressure distribution, and bony alignment taken by radiographs. According to these foot data, we could analyze the biomechanics of the musculoskeletal structure and evaluate a short-term effect of correcting clubfoot. Thus, we could self-examine and improve the shortages of the previous solid ankle-foot orthoses. It is favorable for orthotic design.