Silicone orthosis (SAFO) improves drop foot, CMT patients' gait

January 16, 2005

From Biomechanics online January 2005 http://biomech.com

(Note: to see photos of the SAFO, visit our Photo Files under SAFO ~ G)

Silicone orthosis improves drop foot, CMT patients' gait

By: R.

The Silicone Ankle Foot Orthosis (SAFO) is an effective device for treating

patients with drop foot and Charcot-Marie-Tooth syndrome, according to

researchers from England.

Research by Hampshire orthotist Askew was presented by prosthetist

Watts, designer of the SAFO, in September at the American Orthotic and

Prosthetic Association's annual meeting in Hollywood, FL.

The total contact device lifts the foot (from the front of the leg and top of

the foot) on the swing-through phase of the gait cycle, allowing normal ankle

motion over any kind of surface, according to Watts's presentation.

Of the more than 2000 patients who have been fitted with the device in U.K.

clinical trials, 40% are CMT patients, 20% have spinal injuries, and 10% have

peripheral neuropathy. Watts cautioned that patients with tight Achilles tendons

or fluctuating edema were not good candidates for the device.

In a study presented at the annual meeting of the International Society for

Prosthetics and Orthotics in Hong Kong in August, researchers from the

University of Strathclyde in Glasgow found that after wearing the SAFO for four

weeks, six patients with lower motor neuron lesions had significantly lower

maximum knee and hip flexion than when wearing traditional AFOs, though the AFO

provided greater control of ankle plantar flexion.

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