Innovative Therapy Enables Foot Drop Patients to Walk Again

Nebraska Orthotic & Prosthetic Services (NOPS) is excited to announce that it is now among select facilities in the country working with Bioness Inc. of Valencia, Calif., to offer a new, sophisticated yet user-friendly, functional electrical stimulation (FES) treatment for rehabilitation of foot drop: the wireless NESS L300™ Foot Drop System. Brad Rosenberger, CPO, FAAOP; Cory Schutte, CO; Ray Lines, CO; and Julian Wells, CPO, completed training on the new technology.

NOPS teamed up with the California medical device company to help our patients recovering from stroke, traumatic brain injury, multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, and incomplete spinal cord injury achieve more mobility, independence, function, and freedom.

"The NESS L300 accelerates and complements our traditional therapy," Rosenberger says. "We are excited about incorporating this technology into our acute and outpatient rehab settings. We can maximize rehabilitation by using the device between therapy sessions, and we even encourage patients to purchase the NESS L300 for home use."

The NESS L300 System is at the forefront of innovation in FES therapy for foot drop. The system is wireless, portable, and programmable, and the therapist can fine-tune the settings while the patient is actually walking. The system has three components: a gait sensor worn in the shoe, a wireless stimulating leg cuff worn below the knee, and a clinician-programmed control unit. When the gait sensor detects "heel off," it sends a message to the leg cuff, which then stimulates the leg muscles to lift the foot accordingly. The advanced Intelli-Sense Gait Sensor™ technology of the NESS L300 Foot Drop System allows patients to achieve a more normalized gait on changing terrains and at varying speeds.

For more information on the NESS L300, contact NOPS Lincoln office at (402) 489-0077. More information on Bioness can be found at www.bioness.com.