Ambulation, Activity and AFOs: Addressing the Ankle to Improve Gait and Function

Course overview

This course presents a movement systems approach to management of the foot and ankle. Using a kinesiopathological lens, participants examine the effect of repeated movements, sustained alignments, cumulative micro-trauma, and altered relative flexibility on the function of the ankle. This course presents a comprehensive approach to care based on differential diagnosis, while examining the evidence for interventions that maximize the resiliency of the ankle complex through skeletal maturation and into adulthood. Participants learn hands-on skills for an integrated approach including mobilizations to promote adaptive relative flexibility; improving intrinsic stability through strengthening of the foot core and interventions to positively impact neuroplasticity. Participants also actively use the ICF model to guide recommendations for targeted use of the external support of orthoses and casts to guide adaptive tissue-specific stresses.