Effects of Ankle Foot Orthoses on Restricted Ankle Joint Dorsiflexion Due to Plantarflexors Stiffness in People with Stroke: A Scoping Review

Background: orthotic interventions such as different types of ankle footorthoses have been widely suggested to either prevent or treat restricted anklejoint dorsiflexion and consequent equinus or equinovarus foot deformities inpeople with stroke. however, it is not clear whether orthotic interventions areeffective against spasticity or stiffness. therefore, this systematic review aimedto systematically review the effect of orthotic interventions on restricted anklejoint dorsiflexion due to plantarflexor stiffness.review of literature: an electronic database search was performed usingpubmed, isi web of sciences, scopous within 1990-2018. a set of search termswere derived from medical subject heading (mesh). a total of 486 potentialarticles were identified through database search. following title screeningand reviewing abstract, 60 articles were potentially relevant to undergo fullconsideration. full text article review counted this number down to 2.discussion: studies found significant decreased plantarflexor stiffnessindicated by increased ankle passive dorsiflexion range of motion after orthoticinterventions.conclusion: there are only a few studies which have objectively assessed theeffects of orthotic interventions on restricted ankle joint dorsiflexion dueto plantarflexor stiffness in stroke. a comprehensive study would provideinsight into the effectiveness of orthotic interventions on restricted ankle jointdorsiflexion due to plantarflexor stiffness.