The term “airway orthotic” (AO) is derived from the belief that these tooth-retained oral devices work by manipulating the jaw into the posture that best stabilizes the airway, thus normalizing airway behavior. Several studies have demonstrated their ability to normalize both airway structure and function through manipulation of mandibular posture. Although officially condoned for the treatment...

Electromyography (EMG) is a procedure for evaluating and recording the electrical activity produced by skeletal muscles. EMG has several clinical and prosthetic applications, which include the diagnosis of neuromuscular problems, biomechanical and motor control deficits, and other functional disorders. Moreover, it can be used as a control signal for interfacing with orthotic and/or prosthetic ...

Non-contact anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries in female athletes remain prevalent. Athletes with excessive foot pronation have been identified to be at greater risk for non-contact ACL injury. Excessive foot pronation has been linked to increased medial tibial rotation. Increased medial tibial rotation heightens ACL strain and has been observed at or near the time of ACL injury. Foot or...

BACKGROUND/AIM It is accepted that sports mouthguards decrease the incidence of dental injuries in athletes, but the value of oral orthotics in the prevention of concussion/mild traumatic brain injuries in footballers remains contentious. However, previous investigations have primarily studied non-customized mouthguards without dental/temporo-mandibular joint examinations of the subjects. There...

Cerebral palsy (CP) is defined as a non-progressive neuromotor disorder of cerebral origin. Motor disorders of CP are often accompanied by disturbances of sensation, perception, cognition, communication and behavior. CP is classified into four types, spastic, ataxic, dyskinetic and mixed. Spastic CP accounts for a major portion of CP [1]. In India, the prevalence of CP is estimated around 3 cas...

OBJECTIVE To determine, for a number of techniques used to obtain foot shape based around plaster casting, foam box impressions, and 3-dimensional scanning, (1) the effect the technique has on the overall reproducibility of custom foot orthoses (FOs) in terms of inter- and intracaster reliability and (2) the reproducibility of FO design by using computer-aided design (CAD) software in terms of ...

[Purpose] This study examined the effects of foot orthosis on the gait ability of college students in their 20s with flat feet. [Subjects and Methods] The subjects were 20 college students who had been diagnosed with flat feet. The subjects' step time, step length, stride time, stride length, and gait velocity were measured using the VICON Motion System (Vicon, Oxford, UK) prior to and while we...

This report has discussed a modification of the Kleinert orthosis presently in use and has reviewed some of the physiological mechanisms accompanying tendon repair and the use of early controlled mobilization. The hand is an essential tool required for daily functioning and work, which is a key concept in occupational therapy. Early controlled mobilization has demonstrated some definite benefit...

Contractures are a common and disabling problem for people with spinal cord injuries. To date, contractures have largely been managed with physical interventions such as stretch and passive movements. These are typically administered either manually or with the assistance of various orthoses, devices or aids. However, the results of recent clinical trials question the effectiveness of these int...

Ten participants without physical impairment walked with 0 kg, 11.5 kg, and 23.0 kg of added weight equally distributed about the torso in a harness. At each weight level, the participants walked at slow, normal, and fast self-selected walking speeds. We examined the roll-over characteristics by determining the ankle-foot and knee-ankle-foot roll-over shapes. These shapes, which are the effecti...