Beneficial effects of ankle–foot orthosis daytime use on the gait of Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients

Abstract Background Orthosis use prevents muscle contracture and prolongs ambulation in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). However, its biomechanical effects on gait are unclear. This study assessed the effects of daytime and night-time use of Articulated Ankle Foot Orthosis (AFO) on kinematic, kinetic and spatial/temporal gait parameters of DMD patients. Methods Twenty ambulatory patients (4–12 years of age) were assigned to one of three groups: no orthosis (NoO; n = 7), night-time orthosis (NiO; n = 7), day-time orthosis (DO; n = 6). All subjects were evaluated once (Ev1) and five of them were re-evaluated between five and seven months after Ev1 (Ev2). Findings Cross-sectional analysis with linear mixed-effects models (ANOVA) showed increased peak dorsiflexion angle and dorsiflexor moment and decreased plantar flexion angle and ankle joint power generation for the DOwith group when compared to the NoO group ( P P Interpretation Early daytime and night-time use of Articulated AFO changed gait and minimized typical compensations seen in DMD patients, thus it is recommended in order to prolong gait ability.