Activity after Intervening with Ankle Foot Orthoses V2
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Investigation of Free-living Physical Activity After Intervention with an Ankle Foot Orthoses in Hemiplegic Gait.
IRAS ID
187132
Contact name
Mark McAloon
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Salford University
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 1 months, days
Research summary
IInvestigation of physical activity after intervention with an Ankle Foot Orthoses in Hemiplegic Gait Rehabilitation.
Cerebro Vascular Accident (CVA), is one of the main causes of disability and mortality in the developed world (Ferrarello et al 2013). Annually, worldwide about 16 million people have their first stroke (Strong, 2007). The condition results in decreased mobility and can lead to restricted participation in everyday life. In England, stroke is estimated to cost the economy around £7 billion per year.
A multidisciplinary approach is taken to rehabilitation, commonly combining physiotherapy with orthotic therapy where orthoses are employed within the treatment rational. An ankle foot orthosis (AFO), a device worn on the lower leg is the most common orthoses used to treat gait in post stroke patients (Verma, Arya, Sharma 2012).
Following a review of the literature it was found that AFO related research has predominantly concentrated upon biomechanical outcomes where the patient walks within a controlled environment. A key gap exists in the literature in respect of the relationships between improvements in these outcomes and levels of free-living activity.
To assess physical activity (PA) a body-worn device, the activPAL, will be used. The device is a small, lightweight thigh worn activity monitor capable of determining body posture (stand, sit and lying) and transitions between postures, number of steps and stepping intensity (cadence). This activity monitor was validated for hemiplegic populations exhibiting hemiplegic gait (McAloon,, Hutchins, Twiste, Jones, Forchtner 2014). The unique nature of the study will quantify PA and examine the relationship between activity and intervention with an AFO in the stroke population, providing an insight upon how AFO provision may affect outcomes within the community setting.REC name
London - Central Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
17/LO/1564
Date of REC Opinion
18 Oct 2017
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion