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US-20260124055-A1 - Ankle Foot Orthosis

US20260124055A1US 20260124055 A1US20260124055 A1US 20260124055A1US-20260124055-A1

Abstract

The present invention relates to orthotic devices. In particular, the present invention relates to an ankle foot orthosis (AFO) per se, and to methods of fitting an AFO on a patient.

Inventors

  • Timothy COONEY

Assignees

  • THUASNE

Dates

Publication Date
20260507
Application Date
20251105
Priority Date
20241106

Claims (19)

  1. 1 . An ankle foot orthosis (AFO), comprising: (i) a footplate comprising a non-trimmable portion and at least one trimmable portion; (ii) a calf abutment member comprising a non-trimmable portion and at least two trimmable portions, the at least two trimmable portions being located in an area at least adjacent to a top edge of the calf abutment member and a bottom edge of the calf abutment member; and (iii) a strut extending between the footplate and the calf abutment member.
  2. 2 . The AFO according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one trimmable portion of the footplate is located in a hindfoot region of the footplate, or wherein the at least one trimmable portion of the footplate is located in a forefoot region of the footplate.
  3. 3 . The AFO according claim 1 , wherein the footplate comprises at least two trimmable portions, optionally wherein the at least two trimmable portions are located in a hindfoot region and a forefoot region of the footplate.
  4. 4 . The AFO according to claim 1 , wherein an area at least adjacent and/or towards a front portion of the footplate comprises the at least one trimmable portion, optionally wherein a trimmable portion towards the front portion of the footplate increases a length of the footplate by at least 0.5 cm at its longest point, by at least 1.0 cm or 1.5 cm at its longest point, by at least 2.0 cm or 2.5 cm at its longest point, or by at least 3.0 cm at its longest point.
  5. 5 . The AFO according to claim 1 , wherein an area at least adjacent and/or towards a region of one or both sides of the footplate comprises the at least one trimmable portion, optionally wherein a trimmable portion along a width of the footplate increases the width of the footplate by at least 0.25 cm at its widest point, by at least 0.5 cm or 1.0 cm at its widest point, or by at least 1.5 cm at its widest point.
  6. 6 . The AFO according to claim 1 , wherein an area at least adjacent and/or towards a back portion of the footplate comprises the at least one trimmable portion, optionally wherein a trimmable portion towards the back portion of the footplate increases a length of the footplate by at least 0.5 cm at its longest point, by at least 1.0 cm or 1.5 cm at its longest point, by at least 2.0 cm or 2.5 cm at its longest point, or by at least 3.0 cm at its longest point.
  7. 7 . The AFO according to claim 1 , wherein the footplate comprises at least three or four trimmable portions, optionally wherein an area adjacent to a front portion of the footplate, an area adjacent to a back portion of the footplate, and an area adjacent to a portion of both sides of the footplate comprises a trimmable portion.
  8. 8 . The AFO according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one trimmable portion extends around the entire peripheral edge of the footplate.
  9. 9 . The AFO according to claim 1 , wherein the calf abutment member comprises a trimmable portion located in an area at least adjacent to the top edge, the bottom edge, and two side edges of the calf abutment member.
  10. 10 . The AFO according to claim 1 , wherein the at least two trimmable portions extend around the entire peripheral edge of the calf abutment member.
  11. 11 . The AFO according to claim 1 , wherein a trimmable portion of the calf abutment member at the top edge increases a height of the calf abutment member by at least 0.5 cm at its longest point, by at least 1.0 cm or 1.5 cm at its longest point, or by at least 2.0 cm or 2.5 cm at its longest point, or wherein the trimmable portion at the top edge increases the height of the calf abutment member by at least 2.0 or 2.5 cm at its longest point, by at least 3.0 cm or 3.5 cm at its longest point, by at least 4.0 cm or 4.5 cm at its longest point, or by at least 5.0 cm at its longest point.
  12. 12 . The AFO according to claim 1 , wherein the trimmable portion at the bottom edge increases the height of the calf abutment member by at least 0.5 cm at its longest point, by at least 1.0 cm or 1.5 cm at its longest point, or by at least 2.0 cm or 2.5 cm at its longest point, or wherein the trimmable portion at the bottom edge increases the height of the calf abutment member by at least 2.0 or 2.5 cm at its longest point, by at least 3.0 cm or 3.5 cm at its longest point, by at least 4.0 cm or 4.5 cm at its longest point, or by at least 5.0 cm at its longest point.
  13. 13 . The AFO according to claim 1 , wherein the orthosis comprises a releasable fastener for fastening the calf abutment member to a leg of a subject.
  14. 14 . The AFO according to claim 1 , wherein the strut is connected to the non-trimmable portion of the footplate, and the non-trimmable portion of the calf abutment member.
  15. 15 . The AFO according to claim 1 , wherein the strut comprises or consists of a non-trimmable material, optionally wherein the strut comprises or consists of carbon fibres, fibreglass, or polyester.
  16. 16 . The AFO according to claim 1 , wherein the trimmable portions of the footplate and the calf abutment member comprise guidelines or grooves, and/or wherein the trimmable portions comprise or consist of polyester fibres.
  17. 17 . The AFO according to claim 1 , wherein the trimmable portions comprise a polymer resin, optionally wherein the trimmable portions comprise between 20% and 60%, between 25% and 55%, between 30% and 50%, or between 35% and 45% polymer resin, optionally wherein the polymer resin is epoxy resin or acrylic.
  18. 18 . The AFO according to claim 16 , wherein the trimmable portion of the footplate comprises at least two layers of polyester fibres, and/or wherein the at least two trimmable portions of the calf abutment member comprise at least two layers of polyester fibres.
  19. 19 . The AFO according to claim 1 , wherein: (i) the non-trimmable portion comprises or consists of carbon fibres; (ii) the non-trimmable portion comprises unidirectional fibres and/or bidirectional fibres, optionally wherein the non-trimmable portion comprises bidirectional carbon fibres and unidirectional (UD) carbon fibres; and/or (iii) the non-trimmable portion comprises a polymer resin, optionally wherein the non-trimmable portion comprises between 20% and 60%, between 25% and 55%, between 30% and 50%, or between 35% and 45% polymer resin, optionally wherein the polymer resin is epoxy resin or acrylic.

Description

The present invention relates to orthotic devices. In particular, the present invention relates to an ankle foot orthosis (AFO) per se, and to methods of fitting an AFO on a patient. The use of high strength and lightweight materials in the manufacture of orthotics can have clinical advantages. For instance, in studies of the lower limb, it has been demonstrated that lower weight ankle foot orthotics (AFOs) decrease energy expenditure in walking and can increase cadence in a patient. An AFO consists of a lower footplate, which supports the patient's foot, an elongate strut extending up and around the patient's ankle, and a cuff by which the AFO is secured to the patient's calf. It has been found that composite fibre materials can be effectively employed to offer an orthotic force pattern, i.e. the application of a force on pressure tolerant areas of a person's anatomy using an orthosis to force a biomechanical change, whilst simultaneously being lightweight and strong. When ‘fitting’ a pre-fabricated AFO to a patient, a specialist medical practitioner or orthotist usually needs to trim areas of the AFO, especially around the peripheral edge of the footplate, as one size of pre-fabricated AFO will be required to fit a range of different foot/shoe sizes. However, trimming composite fibre materials is difficult, and requires a specialist cutting and sanding machine. For some orthotists who are mobile between hospital or business locations it is likely that the only tooling available to them would be household scissors, which would not be capable of trimming many types of orthotic composites. For this reason, an orthotist that does not have access to suitable trimming tooling/machinery may need to use AFOs comprising plastics, such as polypropylene or polyethylene, instead of composite fibres. These AFOs can be easily trimmed using scissors, thereby allowing the practitioner to fit the AFO for a given user. However, a plastic AFO may not be as lightweight and/or as strong as a composite fibre AFO, and so may provide the user with an inferior medical outcome compared to that when a composite fibre AFO is used. The present invention arises from the inventors' work in trying to overcome the problems associated with the prior art. Accordingly, in a first aspect of the invention, there is provided an ankle foot orthosis (AFO), comprising: (i) a footplate comprising a non-trimmable portion and at least one trimmable portion;(ii) a calf abutment member comprising a non-trimmable portion and at least two trimmable portions, the at least two trimmable portions being located in an area at least adjacent to the top edge of the calf abutment member and the bottom edge of the calf abutment member; and(iii) a strut extending between the footplate and the calf abutment member. Advantageously, the claimed AFO can be cut on the top and bottom side of the calf cuff, enabling the AFO to be customized to fit a wide range of user leg shapes. For example, the height of the orthosis may be adjusted by cutting off a portion at the top edge if the patient has shorter legs. Alternatively, the height of the orthosis may be adjusted by cutting off a portion at the bottom edge if the patient has longer legs. Furthermore, the claimed product can be cut using simple office scissors. This is due to the fibers used, as the fineness of the fibers and the material used enable “cutability”. In one embodiment, the footplate is configured to extend beneath the sole of a foot of a subject. Typically, the footplate comprises a front which extends beneath the toes of the subject, a back which extends beneath the heel of the subject, and two sides which extend between the front and the back. In one embodiment, the at least one trimmable portion of the footplate is located in a hindfoot region of the footplate. In another embodiment, the at least one trimmable portion of the footplate is located in a forefoot region of the footplate. In some embodiments, the footplate comprises at least two trimmable portions. Accordingly, the at least two trimmable portions of the footplate may be located in a hindfoot region and a forefoot region of the footplate. In some embodiments, an area at least adjacent and/or towards the front of the footplate comprises the at least one trimmable portion. Accordingly, the at least one trimmable portion typically defines an extension to the length of the footplate. In some embodiments, the at least one trimmable portion extends around the peripheral edge of the footplate at least adjacent to the position of the subject's toes when the orthosis is worn by a subject. The trimmable portion towards the front of the footplate may increase the length of the footplate by at least 0.5 cm at its longest point, by at least 1.0 cm or 1.5 cm at its longest point, by at least 2.0 cm or 2.5 cm at its longest point, or by at least 3.0 cm at its longest point. The trimmable portion towards the front of the footplate may increase the length of