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Cover Story
Four years later, the ongoing discussion of the relative merits of surgical and nonsurgical management of Achilles tendon rupture is starting to affect practice patterns – even in the US.
By Cary Groner
Editor Message
Despite evidence of significant lower extremity injury risks associated with ice hockey, even at youth levels, preventing those types of injuries has never been a priority in that sport. But that may be starting to change.
Jordana Bieze Foster, Editor
LER: Pediatrics
Adding experts to care team
True multidisciplinary care can yield great benefits for patients, but despite all the emphasis that makes the statement almost a cliché, it’s not always what patients receive. I first realized this when I was interviewing the heads of various departments and divisions of a large academic medical center, where for many years I was an editor publishing on the faculty’s clinical work and research.
Departments
A meniscal injury gave one practitioner new insight into the patient experience and renewed his belief that healing isn’t just about what happens physically.
By Cary Groner
Although milder than the spasticity-induced cases of equinus, limited ankle dorsiflexion in the non-neurological population is increasingly recognized as a source of excessive strain throughout the foot and a factor in the pathogenesis of many foot conditions.
By Nicholas V. DiMassa and Jeffrey M. Whitaker DPM, FACFAS
Recent analyses cautiously recommend the short-term adjunctive use of hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) for diabetic foot ulcer healing under certain conditions, but in the absence of high-quality clinical trials, experts continue to debate the controversial therapy’s benefits.
By Hank Black
Using muscle function symmetry as an indicator of patient progress after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction can provide insight about potential targets for intervention to improve movement quality, functional performance, and patient outcomes.
By Christopher Kuenze, PhD, ATC; and Adam Kelly, MS, ATC
Given that existing therapies for intermittent claudication are not appropriate for all patients, researchers are working to develop new therapies focused on improving patients’ ability to compensate for a vascular occlusion by expanding collateral artery pathways.
By Steven J. Miller, PhD; A. George Akingba, MD, PhD; and Joseph L. Unthank, PhD
News
In the Moment: Foot Care
By Katie Bell and Jordana Bieze Foster
Vitamin D deficiency is prevalent in patients in the northern US undergoing midfoot, hindfoot, and ankle arthrodesis, even in those without predisposing risk factors, according to a recent study from Vermont that may have implications for lower extremity surgery.
By Katie Bell
The development of bone marrow edema after transitioning from traditional running shoes to minimalist footwear is associated with small intrinsic foot muscle size, according to research from Brigham Young University in Provo, UT.
By Jordana Bieze Foster
A half shoe offloads the forefoot more effectively than a double-rocker full-outsole shoe with an offloading insole, but the half shoe also is more likely to alter gait, according to research from Bologna, Italy.
By Jordana Bieze Foster
In the Moment: Osteoarthritis
By Lori Roniger and Jordana Bieze Foster
Gait training is effective for improving limited mobility in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA), according to a recent study, but the immediate benefit is not sustained after training has stopped.
By Lori Roniger
Although knee adduction moment (KAM) plays a significant role in patients with severe knee osteoarthritis (OA), knee flexion moment (KFM) may be more important early in the disease process, according to research from Stanford University in California.
By Jordana Bieze Foster
Patient-reported function and lower extremity kinematics can predict response to a hip strengthening intervention in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA), according to research from the University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada.
By Jordana Bieze Foster
Market Mechanics
By Emily Delzell
Products
MultiMotion contracture management Corrective and Free Motion joints from Allard USA are now available with integrated uprights. Choose from a combination of proximal and distal straight uprights or…
Sols introduces Sols Flex, 3D-printed customized foot orthoses now available directly to consumers. Sols Flex insoles follow the contours of each wearer’s foot to achieve a fit that is intended to be perfect for the wearer, for his or her shoes, and…
KeepingPace Children’s Orthopedic Footwear now offers its new pediatric heel entry shoe. The new pediatric shoe features triple width and double depth, so it can be worn easily with ankle foot orthoses as well as…
DJO Global offers the new Arch Rival, a prefabricated orthosis designed to treat subtle cavus foot. The Arch Rival promotes natural foot function by improving stability, adding shock absorption, and alleviating pain.
The BK Freedom Cover from JAFO is a lightweight, easy-on, easy-off custom neoprene prosthetic cover that provides a shapeable foam to replicate the calf on below knee amputees. The BK Freedom Cover is available in three heights…
OPTP has introduced a new foam roller to its signature line of Pro-Roller products. The 18″ x 6″ Pro-Roller Soft is the first of its kind in the Pro-Roller family. The 18″ length and compact size make it easy to carry or…
The new Bort Select TaloStabil (#054 700) from Bort-Swiss Orthopedic Supply is an active ankle support. Constructed of anatomical 3D knitted fabric, the ankle support provides class II compression and incorporates two…
Durable with a 385-lb weight limit and lightweight at just 325 g, the new Terion K2 1C11 from Ottobock is an adjustable, low-profile prosthetic foot with a split-toe design for use by level K2 amputees.
Becker Orthopedic is proud to introduce the Triple Action Stance/Swing Control ankle joint. This new component offers high stiffness in the coronal and transverse planes, and is intended for individuals with neuromuscular pathologies.
The new AirShift OA knee brace from Medical Specialties uses an air bladder system to comfortably unload the opposite compartment of the knee. The AirShift is primarily used to treat unicompartmental knee osteoarthritis, but…
