Foot shell tears
Amy Paulios
Description
Collection
Title:
Foot shell tears
Creator:
Amy Paulios
Date:
1/14/2010
Text:
Dear List,
A patient new to my office has had chronic problems with her Ossur foot
shell tearing prematurely. She wears a symes prosthesis with an
interesting combination of a low profile Vari Flex foot with a high
profile (or high top) foot shell but I'm sure she prefers this because
the transition from foot to socket is less noticeable and it looks
decent cosmetically. As you can imagine, the proximal circumference of
the foot shell must stretch a bit with each step because the distal end
of her socket sinks into the foot shell as the Flex Foot compresses.
This stretching of the foot shell is likely what leads to the tearing at
the proximal edge but what's interesting is that she used to get 12-18
months use before they would tear, and in the last year they've lasted
as little as 4 weeks. I realize there is some variable in how each foot
shell was modified (thinned inside the ankle portion to accommodate the
size of the socket) which impacted how long it took to tear, but there
has to be a way to make these things last longer.
Does anyone have advice on how to increase the longevity of these foot
shells? Has anyone out there used a different manufacturer's foot shell
on a Flex Foot?
Thanks in advance for suggestions.
Amy Paulios CP
Prosthetic Laboratories
Madison, WI
A patient new to my office has had chronic problems with her Ossur foot
shell tearing prematurely. She wears a symes prosthesis with an
interesting combination of a low profile Vari Flex foot with a high
profile (or high top) foot shell but I'm sure she prefers this because
the transition from foot to socket is less noticeable and it looks
decent cosmetically. As you can imagine, the proximal circumference of
the foot shell must stretch a bit with each step because the distal end
of her socket sinks into the foot shell as the Flex Foot compresses.
This stretching of the foot shell is likely what leads to the tearing at
the proximal edge but what's interesting is that she used to get 12-18
months use before they would tear, and in the last year they've lasted
as little as 4 weeks. I realize there is some variable in how each foot
shell was modified (thinned inside the ankle portion to accommodate the
size of the socket) which impacted how long it took to tear, but there
has to be a way to make these things last longer.
Does anyone have advice on how to increase the longevity of these foot
shells? Has anyone out there used a different manufacturer's foot shell
on a Flex Foot?
Thanks in advance for suggestions.
Amy Paulios CP
Prosthetic Laboratories
Madison, WI
Citation
Amy Paulios, “Foot shell tears,” Digital Resource Foundation for Orthotics and Prosthetics, accessed November 2, 2024, https://library.drfop.org/items/show/231069.
