Ankle-foot orthosis (AFO) designs vary in size, shape, and functional characteristics depending on the desired clinical application. Passive Dynamic (PD) Response ankle-foot orthoses (PD-AFOs) constitute a design that seeks to improve walking ability for persons with various neuromuscular disorders by passively (like a spring) providing variable levels of support during the stance phase of gait...

In China, the burden of chronic obstructive disease (COPD) is high in never-smokers but little is known about its causes in this group. We analysed data on 287 000 female and 30 000 male never-smokers aged 30-79 years from 10 regions in China, who participated in the China Kadoorie Biobank baseline survey (2004-2008). Prevalence of airflow obstruction (AFO) (pre-bronchodilator forced expiratory...

Ameloblastic fibro-odontoma (AFO) is a rare mixed odontogenic tumor consisting of both ectodermal and mesenchymal components. It occurs predominantly in children and adolescents, especially in the mandibular posterior region. Histopathologically, AFO exhibits the combination of ameloblastic fibroma-like tissue and complex odontoma. A case of AFO in a 1-year-old child was presented. It produced ...

[Purpose] This study examined how an ankle-foot orthosis (AFO) influences the weight-bearing of chronic stroke patients during the performance of five functional standing tasks. [Subjects and Methods] Sixteen patients with stroke participated in this experiment. The subjects performed functional standing tasks with or without the AFO and weight bearing was measured during the tasks. [Results] P...

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of selected assistive devices on normal standards of gait. The gait characteristics of stride length, step length, step width, and foot angle were analyzed for 24 right-dominant, healthy men under four conditions: right ankle-foot orthosis (AFO), right hemiplegic arm sling (HAS), both devices (AFO+HAS), and no devices. The dependent varia...

This paper presents the modular design and control of a novel variable impedance compact compliant wearable ankle robot (powered Ankle-Foot Orthosis, AFO) for overground gait rehabilitation and assistance mainly for stroke patients. Design of AFO, its construction, kinematics, working principle, actuation, control etc. are described. A novel variable impedance compact compliant series elastic a...

BACKGROUND A novel splint, the assisting ankle-foot orthoses (AFO), was developed to provide adjustable sustained stretching to improve conservative treatment for equinus deformities in children with cerebral palsy (CP). The treatment effect was validated by follow-up visits. METHODS This study involved subjects between 2 and 12 years old, including 28 CP children treated with splint-assisted...

BACKGROUND Articulated or hinged ankle-foot orthosis (AFO) allow more range of motion. However, quantitative investigation on articulated AFO is still sparse. OBJECTIVE The objective of the study was to quantitatively investigate effects of alignment and joint types on mechanical properties of the thermoplastic articulated AFO. STUDY DESIGN Tamarack dorsiflexion assist flexure joints with t...

Previous publications have reported on the flexibility of ankle-foot orthoses (AFO) only in the same plane as the applied load. This paper reports on a test apparatus developed to detect the flexibility of an AFO in 5 degrees of freedom when subjected to a plantar/dorsiflexion moment, a medial/lateral moment or a torque. A moment applied to an AFO in one plane induces angulation and translation...