Drop Foot refers to a disorder involving a person's ankle and foot muscles. A person with foot drop has limited control over the movement of the affected foot. This lack of control over the muscles in the ankle and foot results in an altered gait. Drop Foot refers to a disorder involving a person's ankle and foot muscles. A person with foot drop has limited control over the movement of the affected foot. This lack of control over the muscles in the ankle and foot results in an altered gait.

Drop Foot itself is not a disease but rather a symptom of one of many possible underlying problems or diseases. The loss of control in a person's foot and ankle resulting in foot drop is often caused by an injury to the person's peroneal nerve, which runs along the outside of a person's leg between the bottom of the knee down through the foot to the toes. The peroneal nerve can be damaged by fractures to the leg or from other injuries sustained to the sciatic nerve, the main nerve in the leg. The most common cause of drop foot is a herniated lumbar disc near the bottom of the spine. A herniated lumbar disc affects the sciatic nerve and often causes a person to lose some amount of control over the ankle and foot.

Genetic diseases such as Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, Multiple Sclerosis or Parkinsons Disease can also debilitate the sciatic nerve or the peroneal nerve and reduce the ability of the affected person to control his foot and ankle muscles.

Rehabilitative therapy for Drop Foot varies depending upon the root cause of the condition in a particular person. Proper diagnosis of the root cause is obviously essential in determining a treatment program to overcome the problem. For cases that involve injury, a magnetic resonance imaging or electromyogram can be used to understand the core problem. Stabilization of a person's foot can be done by fitting a patient with an Ankle Foot Orthosis or a drop foot brace. Surgery is sometimes used to repair whatever damage has been done to the nerves.

Drop foot braces that can effectively help people walk better. It can help people walk more smoothly if they have such pain and many other walking conditions that can slow down the pace at which you walk. Usually, these braces are made from a thin plastic and can slip into a shoe. The great thing about AFOs (ankle foot orthosis) is that they can be easily hidden by the use of a pair of pants. This is why you probably don't see many people wearing them today. Sometimes people want to walk better but they get caught up in the looks of a brace.

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Submitted On Feb 16, 2012. Viewed 10 times.