Limitations
heterogenous, orthosis, AFOs, AFO
AIDS
The inclusion of a heterogenous sample of participants with peripheral neurological and neuromuscular disorders could be considered as a limitation. However, all participants were able to walk for at least 6 min with noAFO (but gait aids such as sticks were allowed), which is typical of AFO users with foot drop that is not of central neurological origin. The helical orthosis evaluated is thus suitable for this population.No recommendations exist regarding the time required for individuals to accommodate to a new AFO and adapt their gait. Therefore, we do not know if 7 days was sufficient for accommodation to have fully occurred.We were unable to fully analyse the effect of the AFOs on propulsion owing to the sub-maximal gait speed imposed on participants. Further studies should therefore evaluate the biomechanical effects of the hAFO at the participants’ own, spontaneous gait speed.The fact all the orthoses were made by the same orthotist ensured homogeneity in the moulding and manufacturing of the orthoses; however, future studies should evaluate the repeatability of hAFOs made by different orthotists.