Tibia/ankle orthosis

Abstract

A tibia/ankle orthosis includes a flexible jacket shaped to fit around the lower leg of a patient. The jacket has a continuous resilient front section for extending along the front of the tibia and across the width of the tibia. A pair of semi-rigid uprights extend along lateral and medial sides of the jacket. The jacket terminates in lateral and medial flaps that overlap one another at the rear of the patient's lower leg. A footplate is rotatably secured adjacent the lower portion of the jacket for supporting the foot while the jacket is wrapped around the tibia. A narrow slotted opening at the lower front portion of the jacket permits the jacket to be applied from front to rear when wrapping the jacket around the lower leg while the patient's foot is held against rotation when placing the patient's foot on the footplate. The lateral and medial end portions of the jacket overlap uniformly around the patient's calf. A first set of straps on one flap extend through the opposite side of the jacket, and are wrapped in a first direction around the jacket and tightened to apply torque in a first direction of rotation. A second set of straps on the other flap extend in an opposite direction around the jacket and are tightened to apply torque in an opposite direction. This permits tightening of the jacket around the lower leg with torque applied in opposite directions to ensure good support while uniformly distributing the pressure around the leg, ensuring uniform fit and comfort of the orthosis.