Ankle-Foot Orthoses Design Shortcomings: User Complaint Survey

Ankle-Foot Orthoses (AFOs) provide stability and improve mobility for individuals with lower limb impairments, caused by conditions such as multiple sclerosis, stroke, and peripheral nerve damage. Despite their benefits, achieving optimal compliance and user satisfaction with ankle-foot orthoses is challenging due to discomfort and design flaws. This study employed an open online survey to gather user complaints about AFOs. Based on 84 inclusions with various diagnoses, pressure points (50%), restricted ankle movement (54%), and shoe-related issues, particularly among women (44% of female respondents) were most common. The findings suggest that user satisfaction could be enhanced by improving flexibility, comfort, ease-of-use and aesthetics of ankle-foot orthosis design. Methodological limitations and potential biases present in this study highlight the need for future research to understand the causes of AFO non-compliance.