BME 401 Senior Design Project by Kathryn Feeney, Gianna Jewhurst, and Jenna Necaise
A new unilateral ankle-foot orthosis (AFO) needs to be created to aid pediatric patients, aged two months to four years old, with clubfoot in applying enough force to maintain the foot in a healthy position while improving their overall gait.
Project Overview
Project Scope
This AFO should be tailored to the affected foot, offering improved mobility and gait while effectively correcting the foot’s angle to match the standard position. One of the main stressing points of this project is the need for a unilateral-specific design that allows the patient to wear the brace only on the affected foot, as current commonly-used AFOs require the patients to wear braces on both feet and that the feet be connected. Secondly, the new AFO should be scalable to fit the population of pediatric patients 2 months-4 years old properly. The device should also be cost effective to maximize practical application in clinical settings. Successful completion of this project is a prototype of this AFO designed for pediatric patients that can successfully evert the foot’s angle over time to improve gait, along with CAD files for clinicians to scale and build custom AFOs for patients by April of 2024.
Design Specifications
| Specification | Metrics |
|---|---|
| Correct Rotation | 60º eversion external with respect to the tibia |
| Cost | Less than $350.00 |
| Design | Unilateral and below-knee |
| Dorsiflexion | adjustable ranging from 10º to 15º |
| Durability | Usable for at least three months, until the patient needs a larger brace |
| Ease of Use | With practice, caregivers are able to put on and remove the brace in less than 2 minutes |
| Force Application | Second Metatarsal: 0.2- 0.5 N Talus Neck: 0.21-0.57 N (based on current forces applied by commonly used braces) |
| Internal Rotation | Less than 15° degrees of rotation inside the AFO |
| Size | 4.5 cm – 20.8 cm range from the smallest to largest sizes |
| Skin Sensitivity | Wear for up to 23 hours a day with no skin reaction |
| Ventilation | Breathable, no moisture buildup inside the AFO |
| Weight | 350 g – 650 g range from the smallest to largest sizes |
Timeline and Responsibilities
