The Richie Brace for Foot Problems
The gradual deteriorating of a flat foot or fallen arch in an adult is generally named posterior tibial tendon dysfunction as well as adult acquired flatfoot and may have problematic consequences if not detected earlier and sorted out. Posterior tibial tendon dysfunction is more frequent in older as well as over weight adults. The leading problem is how the posterior tibial muscles which are responsible for holding up the arch of the feet are no longer effective at doing this, and so a gradual flattening of the feet takes place. As well as a collapsing in the arch of the foot there is usually increasing discomfort and pain within the arch area of the feet as well as the ankle joint. As the posterior tibial tendon dysfunction progresses, further walking gets progressively tougher and it is really tireing.
There are actually typically four stages associated with posterior tibial tendon dysfunction that the problem progresses through with one being the early stage and 4 being the final phase that only surgery can fix. There is certainly some disagreement of the stages of this as their is variability among health professionals plus some reliability concerns. With that said, stage one is typically managed with foot orthotics and exercises plus some medication for the pain. Stage two usually needs much more aggressive and supportive foot supports, continuing with the exercises along with higher levels of pain relief drugs may be required. Both stage 1 and 2 may benefit from high top supporting shoes. Long term weight loss programs are usually likely to be helpful. If that does not halt the development and the foot is heading towards a stage three, then there is growing possibility that reconstructive foot surgical procedures are likely to be needed. This is why it's very crucial that there be more aggressive conservative management of the foot when it's still in stage 2 to halt the progress.
An extremely common intervention for posterior tibial tendon dysfunction given it continues to stage 2 would be the Richie Brace. This brace is being widely used and it has been shown to be really effective at stopping the development of this disorder and avoiding the need for surgical treatment. Surgical treatments are usually effective, but there is frequently a left over degree of disability remaining as the surgery typically does require the fusing of some important joints and also the moving of muscles attachments with other areas of the foot. The Richie Brace is a combination of an aggressively supportive bespoke foot orthotic and an ankle foot orthoses with struts to support each side of the ankle joint. The custom foot orthoses is crafted from a plaster cast or optical scan of the foot with the foot held in a ideal alignment. The intention of the foot orthotic section of the Richie Brace will be to make an attempt to hold the foot in this corrected placement. The struts that get added up the outside of the ankle are hinged with the ankle joint permitting movement to occur at this joint. These struts will be held on by Velcro on the lower calf to further support and boost the effects of the foot orthoses. Generally if the progression of posterior tibial tendon dysfunction is usually halted by using this, then surgery is usually not needed.