Welcome! Active Alignment has merged with Ortho-Kinetics to expand our service area. We are now providing pedorthic care in the Cambridge location in addition to the existing Active Alignment locations in Waterloo, New Hamburg, and Stratford. Ortho-Kinetics patients, please click here to learn more.
FOOTWEAR MODIFICATION
“Good shoes take you good places.”
Seohyun
Footwear modifications are changes or adaptations made to footwear to improve function and to accommodate specific pathologies such as a Leg Length Discrepancy, Ankle Arthrodesis (fusion), Severe Arthritis, Neurological conditions and Diabetic complications.
Lift – sole extension
A lift or a sole extension is a permanent, external modification of the midsole and outsole. It adds a prescribed amount of height to one or both shoes to help a patient who has a leg length discrepancy feel and walk level. Walking and feeling level can reduce unwanted compensations of other soft tissue and joint structures that would be required to support a shorter limb.
When constructing a lift modification, there is a potential of utilizing an internal lift instead of external modification. If the lift required is below 2cm, and there is sufficient space within the footwear, the inclusion on an internal modification is possible.
Rockered Sole
A rockered sole is a permanent, external modification to the midsole where material is added to allow the flex point(s) of the shoe be:
- Moved
- Increased
- Strategically placed to improved function
- Protection of the foot and ankle during gait
Circumstances that would require a change to the flex point(s) of the shoe would include:
- Instances/conditions where the natural transfer of pressure from heel to toe is limited by surgical intervention
- Arthritic joints and deformities of the foot.
Often times the patient is unaware of the compensations other joints of the body make (knees, hips, back) to create smooth ambulation.
