AFO’s

Catherine12

Hi, my 4 year old is non verbal and has recently been fitted with AFO's. He has spastic diiplegia, can only stand when aided and is a wheelchair user. The AFO's are marking his ankle bones and he is complaining that his feet hurt. The specialists have said they are fitting fine and that once the marking disappears then all is ok. I guess my question is to the more experienced people with CP, are we being cruel by insisting he wear them or are we doing him hindering him by being lenient. He has had problems with his feet all winter due to the cold anyway. We have him wearing knee length thermal socks and slipper socks when indoors to keep them warm.

Thanks.

vicky2216

Hi. It's been a couple of weeks since you posted this but I thought I'd still reply.
My daughter is 6 and wears AFO's. For the first couple of years we had no problem until last year when they were changed to combined splints (AFO's with a DAFO inside). She ended up with red marks and alot of pain.
Yes it is ok for kids to be marked whilst wearing them so long as the redness goes after 20 minutes (I've always found it takes about 30 minutes though). HOWEVER it is not acceptable for a child to be sore, uncomfortable or in pain.
We went back to the hospital and one orthotist told me she didn't see a problem (like you've been told). We then saw another orthotist who has been fantastic and looked at my daughter, not the budget!
She was recast and now have the best AFO's she's ever had.
The way forward for us was my daughters physio agreed that she shouldn't be in pain and phoned the orthotics dept to insist on another assesment.
I think you need a second opinion and most probably recasting.
Our children have enough to deal with without being in pain. Goodluck xx

niceboots

Hi I am 25 and have been wearing afos on and off since I was 4 or 5.
I have just started wearing an afo on my left - more affected leg, and a dafo on my right.
Wearing afo's or any sort of orthosis takes time to get used to, and when 'breaking them in' it is recommended that the user starts by wearing them for half an hour on, and an hour off for the first few days, then gradually increase the time.
Personally I find that helps for the first week or two as long as I repeat it several times a day, and have a good stretch before putting the splints on. I find that if I don't stretch before, my muscles tighten and fight against the splints.
I also know that a casting is not often perfect first time. so keep a close eye, and don't hesitate to keep going back, but keep persisting!!!