A couple of unusual ideas/devices

I have just been looking at a site covering what it describes as “WALKING AID Orthopedic Devices”. These “aids” are very space-age in appearance although, at a first glance, I was not quite sure what their orthopedic properties actually were.

On a closer inspection and, having read the information, they are automated walkers for children or adults who have a condition like cerebral palsy, or who are recovering or in rehabilitation from an accident or injury. What I liked most about these devices is the fact that they look good and would draw attention for reasons of style rather than reasons of disability. The page in question is here - http://psipunk.com/walking-aid-orthopedic-device-by-luke-forward/. The pictures are diagrammatic and they indicate one of the devices in use.

Something else!

At second item of orthopedic interest that I have been taking a look at is an orthopedic mouse. This is of course a computer mouse, but even so, how one makes it orthopedic is quite a question. The answer however can be seen on this page http://www.agadget.net/orthopedic-mouse/ and I for one quite like the idea behind it.

The way it works is quite novel. Rather than moving the mouse right or left, or up or down to move the mouse curser across the screen you simply tilt the mouse.

This works because the mouse is in fact in a fixed (non-movable) position. However the functioning and ergonomic section of the mouse (the bit you hold) is elevated above its base and literally rocks in any direction based on where you want your mouse curser to go. That is, you tilt forward to move up the screen, backwards to move down the screen and left or right to mimic that direction. During all of these small movements the mouse stays glued to its spot meaning that you always have it located in your most personally ergonomic position.

Other than that, all of the other functions of the mouse are conventional in operation, so it is simple to learn and use. So how much does it cost and is it currently available – I have no idea.

Stair and perch lifts – a mobility solution

Getting up and down a flight of stairs gets more difficult as people get older. Accidents, illnesses and other health issues can additionally make ascending and descending steps challenging and even dangerous.

The solution to getting from one level to another, particularly in a house, can often be a stairlift.

Stairlifts come in many forms including one where you are transported whilst still standing. Lifts of this type are called perch stairlifts and are ideal for those who find standing up and sitting down hard. This means that anyone who uses a riser recliner chair may find a perch lift easier to use than a regular stair lift.

More conventional stairlifts use a seat which will have a backrest and often armrests. A seat belt or security strap will be compulsory in some countries and this secures the “traveller” in place during the transition.

Stairlifts can travel up and down straight flights of steps or move around corners. Turning or curved stairlifts are more expensive as the curved sections need to be “made to measure” for the stairway in question.

If the curved section simply deals with a landing, then it will be combined with straight elements which will keep costs down, however, if the stairway is a spiral one it will have a much greater cost.

There are limitation to where and how a stairlift can be fitted.

Naturally the width of the stair needs to be sufficient to accommodate the lift and chair and the adjacent wall must be a structural one that can take the weight and fixings of the track and chair mechanism.

Certain spiral stairs can be too narrow and/or too curved to receive a stairlift installation, however this kind of occurrence is unusual.
When not in use the stairlift chair usually comes to rest just around the top or bottom bend of the stair. This means that it does not obstruct the stair and prevent more mobile people from climbing it.

Most stairlift installations can be fitted in a single day, however the manufacturing time may result in a delay between ordering and fitting. This delay will depend on how busy the supplier is and how many sections of made-to-measure tracking are required.

Once fitted a stairlift can be expected to function without problems for many years. The motors are normally robust and reliable and, although occasional servicing is required, they prove cheap to run and maintain.

Though once very expensive, this kind of mobility apparatus is now common place in many homes and it can keep a two storey house easily accessible even if personal mobility becomes an issue.

Five fingers shoes

A rather strange title for a blog and a very strange and unusual type of footwear.

Five fingers shoes are the latest fad in shoe design and they throw everything that we normally associate with shoe design out of the window.

What they are – These strange looking shoes are more like gloves for the feet. They don’t have a toe box, but instead have a separate compartment for each and every toe, five for each shoe. The upper of these shoes is light and made of fabric and the sole pretty much duplicates the appearance of the underside of a human foot, right down to the toes. This sole is also very flexible.

All told this means that these shoes act to cover and protect the feet, but they do nothing when it comes to supporting the feet, providing a sturdy sole or supporting the foot’s natural arch.

So what do they do – What they do is allow the feet to work in the most natural way possible. This means that once you get used to wearing them you will start walking as if you had bare feet. This means that all of the muscles in your feet will start working, you will feel the ground and its contours, and your toes will spread and distribute your weight as you walk. This helps balance and it good for the muscles from the legs right through to the back. Indeed, one of the claims of these five fingers shoes is that they can alleviate back pain.

What do they look like – The only sensible answer to this is odd. They look a little bit like you borrowed your feet from a character from “The Planet of the Apes”. The shoes mimic the feet, so they look like feet, but in whatever colour of shoes that you select.

What are they used for – They were developed for running, but they can be used for any activity and all of the indications are that they can improve posture, foot comfort and a range of other human conditions.

Are they a gimmick – They look like one, however the scientific evidence behind them means that they might just be the start of a footwear revolution.

Are they expensive – Yes
With a bit of luck the price will start to drop, but these beauties cost as much as a serious pair of hiking shoes, and they are not cheap.

You can find out about these and some other unusual shoe types by performing a search.

Thinking about buying a bed!

Having mentioned about changing my content I am going to start by revisiting an old and frequently written about topic, namely beds.

Beds and mattresses are very important because we spend around one third of our lives sleeping and recovering from the exertions of the day. This means that a bed is the most frequently used item of furniture in everyone’s life and it also means that it gets a lot of wear and use.

For these reasons the purchase of a bed requires considerable thought and it should see a fair sum of money being spent on it.

A bed has two key components, the bed frame and the mattress and these can be purchased separately or, more commonly, as a single “all-in-one” unit.

When it comes to the frame, this needs to be strong and sturdy and, if independent of the bed, it may outlast the life span of two or more mattresses.

Divan beds tend to be sold with the frame and mattress as a single package where both are fabric covered and match one another. However, if the mattress is bought separately it can be selected independently of the frame and this “can” offer more options.

Best type of be and mattress

There is of course no best type. It is a matter of personal choice and individual preference, however getting the right bed “for you” requires a bit of research.

Today there are many different types of bed and mattress and this provides a lot of potions for the prospective buyer.

The first choice is probably whether or not to get a divan, with its extra drawer space, or select a standard frame – which can allow the bed to be lower.

The mattress is the big choice though, and this should take priority over every other consideration. The first thing that you need to do is choose the largest sized bed/mattress combination that will fit into your bedroom. If you can squeeze a king size rather than a regular double, you should do so. The result will be that two sleepers can sleep independently of their movements affecting the person in the bed and that is always a good thing.

The next big choice is one of mattress filling and there are many options. Spring based mattresses remain the best sellers, but you should consider some of the foam based materials like memory foam and latex and look at the composite mattresses where tow or more systems are combined.

Finally, if you want an orthopedic quality mattress you will have to pay more money. These beds have a higher build quality and use the best materials and workmanship, but this comes at a cost.

The other thing that you should try to do is to try out some mattresses in advance of making a decision. All stores should let you lay down on a mattress and this is a good way of determining if the bed works for you. Don’t do this for 30 seconds or a minute. Try to lay down in a stationary position for a least 20 to 30 minutes and see if you start to feel like going to sleep. If you do not, or if you feel a need to change your position, it suggests that the mattress may not be ideal for you.

Changing my content

Because what can be described as an orthopedic product is very open to debate I will be expanding the scope of some of the products that I describe in this blog.

Up to now most of the posts covered things like beds, mattresses, chairs, shoes and other “obvious” orthopedically related items. What I will now do is expand that limitation to include other useful and health related aids.

My main reason for doing this is that it gives me more to write about and a broader scope of product types. However, since many aids, services and devices are used by similar people with different challenges there remains a connection between my original intent.

Exactly what I will cover in future is something that I am unsure about, but I think that all manner of different health and mobility related aids, from wheelchairs to utensils that assist in the kitchen, will be included. I will still make posts about ergonomic chairs, comfort shoes, memory foam mattresses and the like, but there will also be some other interesting things thrown into the mix.

Without formulating any definitive ideas, here of some thoughts of products to be covered.

Sauna and hydrotherapy treatments and equipment.

Mobility scooters, strollers and wheelchair.

Different types of bathroom aid from rails to seats.

Supports and strapping for injury and recuperation.

Chairlifts and other means of transportation like evac chairs.

Easy hold devices that could include cutlery or other kitchen devices.

The list can go on and on, so I will just have to see what I come up with over time.

Healthy shoes - what to look for

Very few people wear good fitting healthy shoes. There are a number of reasons for this and they range from a general ignorance about foot health through to prioritizing fashion and style above comfort and wear-ability. Price is also a factor with short lived fashion shoes often being cheaper than the less fashionable comfort style footwear.

What is and is not a good shoe will always be open to debate, however there are a number of design traits that ensure that some shoes are superior to others. To find out what the different parts of a shoe are called and how they work together you need to look at the anatomy of a shoe. You can find lists and pictures of the different shoe component compositions by searching online. These lists/pictures of the various parts of a shoe describe what they do and how they interact with the rest of the shoe or boot. This will give you an understanding of how much thought and attention goes into designing and manufacturing a good shoe.

Paramount to being a good shoe is having a good build quality. This relates to the materials used and the way in which they are put together. Not too many years ago manmade fabrics were seen as inferior to leather and suede, but modern synthetic materials can be waterproof, breathable and stylish and many comfort and orthopedic shoes are made from materials of this type. Even tough walking and hiking shoes use manmade fabrics that keep the water out whilst letting water vapour escape.

Good linings and plenty of supporting padding are very important for any good shoe. Parts of the foot like the arch need to be adequately supported and the heel needs to have a strong high counter that does not bend or flex. The padding plus a good insole will act like a suspension system evening out poor surfaces and preventing shock waves shuddering up the body.

The inside of the shoe should also be smooth and free of seems and any other projecting parts of the construction. Having a shoe that rubs or is abrasive towards any part of the foot is not only uncomfortable, but also potentially damaging. Good linings are very often a measure of a high quality pair of shoes and good shoes should never make your feet, legs or back ache.

Most quality shoes, particularly those tagged as being orthopedic, will have the upper made from many separate sections. Each of these parts has a particular function and combining one or more of these parts can dilute the shoes overall performance. As an example, many fashion shoes do not have separate toes boxes and this can result in the important toe box losing its shape and contorting or constraining the toes in an unnatural way. Toe boxes need to give the toes adequate space to move.

Ultimately the best way to select a pair of shoes is to try them on, test them and make sure that they still feel good after several hours of wear. Regrettably this is of course never possible, so arming yourself in advance with as much information as possible about well designed and made shoes is the next best alternative. Good shoes never come cheap!

Rollator and walking aids

Getting around under our own steam is something that most of us take for granted until age, and accident, or some kind of illness turn mobility into something that we no longer take for granted.

However, when walking starts to become a problem there are a number of options available.

The first is to use a simple aid like a walking stick, but this may not suffice and then we are left with a number of options that range from using a wheelchair or mobility scooter to walking with the aid of a frame.

Not too many years ago these walking frames, commonly called “zimmer frames” in Britain (after the main manufacturer of the product) were primitive. They also had a reputation associated with “immobility” – the opposite of their intended use.

Over the intervening years many advances have subsequently taken place. These changes have seen these walking frames adopt wheels and even brakes and now they are a genuine mobility aid that can be used outside the home every bit as much as within it. Here are the main choices.

The old style four legged frame that you lift and move forward is still going strong. But there is a slightly more advanced version that has small wheels on its front legs which allow it to be pushed rather than lifted forward.

Today this type of frame has though been largely superseded by the new style “rollator” walking frame.

The rollator has either 3 or 4 wheels on each of its (3 or 4 legs) and these wheels mean that the rollator can be pushed with ease. Large tyres mean that this type of walking aid can be used outdoors and on a surface that is not perfectly even.

Brakes allow the rollator to be stopped, or for its speed to be controlled, and handlebar grips give it a feel of control and stability. Other attributes that set it apart from the old style frames are carrying compartments and a seat area that lets the person using it stop and rest at any time.