Orthotics

Patients require braces for many reasons; to promote healing, functionally assist a weak limb, control pain, or facilitate rehabilitation.  In most cases, bracing is determined by a team of specialists; your therapist and physician determine the need for bracing, and the Orthotist will determine the scope and design of that brace.  It is important to understand that your Orthotist does not issue the prescription for a brace.  Your physician holds all final decisions for the need and ultimate design of your brace.

Your clinician will conduct a very detailed assessment to determine the proper orthosis for you.  Walking evaluations, muscle strength and flexibility, lifestyle goals are categories that will be focused on during your examination.  Your clinician will discuss if a prefabricated device will suit your needs, or if you will be best served by a custom orthosis. Measurements are recorded for prefabricated devices, while custom devices require an impression of the body region requiring the orthosis.  Impressions, or casts, come in all shapes and sizes and use a variety of materials.  The impression material is usually wrapped around your body (foot, knee, hand, back, etc) and left in place to harden.  Once hard, it is removed, filled with liquid plaster, and a mold is created of you for fabrication of your custom orthosis.  This process usually takes 10-20 minutes following the evaluation.

If you are being issued a prefabricated device, you may receive it on the day of your first appointment.  At Infinite Technologies, we take proper insurance billing very serious. Certain paperwork (prescriptions, letters of medical need, pre-authorization) may need to be in your file before we can deliver your orthotic device to you.  This may delay your delivery, and we may ask you to contact your physician if we are missing anything.

If you are being fit with a custom device, that orthosis requires fabrication either in our lab or an outside facility.  Most are fabricated on site.  Depending on your paperwork and the ability to obtain any specialized parts, your project could take approximately two weeks to complete.  Back-orders in componentry, and paperwork delays could slow this process.  Be assured we are working hard to fabricate your device as quickly as possible.

Due to the nature of orthotic devices, whether custom or prefabricated, we cannot guarantee a perfect fit on the day of your delivery.  Slight adjustments are necessary to almost all braces.  When you arrive for your delivery, you will wear your device in the office and do a variety of small activities. We will perform all of the immediate adjustments at that time.  Once comfortable, although perhaps not perfect, we will have you break it in over a period of 2-3 weeks.  Most remaining issues resolve on their own as you become accustomed to the new device.  At your first follow up appointment, we will seek to resolve the remaining issues.  Some cases do require more follow up adjustments, and we cannot predict when this may or may not be the case.  We ask for your patience while we take a systematic approach to any adjustment you require and that you comply with our instructions and recommendations as best as you can.

Orthoses are not the most fashionable thing you can wear.  We offer a variety of color and design options and will try our best to make it look as “non-medical” as possible.  The brace’s intent is not to wow the fashionistas, but to help you regain your functional lifestyle and improve your overall condition.

We offer a wide array of colors, design sleeves, skin pigmentations, and padding colors to help the appearance of your device.  Please ask your practitioner about these options.

Whether your brace is custom or prefabricated, it will be trimmed to the shape of your foot.  However, an orthosis adds bulk, taking up extra room in your shoe. If you already wear tight shoes, accommodating a brace into them will be near impossible.  If you wear roomier shoes, there is a chance you will not have to change your shoe size. We believe in keeping a shoe as small as possible, both for appearance and proper function.  If you require a new shoe, we will guide you through the selection and sizing process. We offer some options through our office, but unless you require diabetic / therapeutic shoes, these will be out of pocket expenses.  There are limits to how much your orthosis can be trimmed to accommodate a shoe.  Your device is intended to provide a medically necessary function for you, and trimming it solely to accommodate a stylish shoe may compromise that function, or place you at risk for blisters, calluses and wounds.  Please take your practitioner’s advice seriously regarding these recommendations.

This is a difficult question in a general way, as there is broad range that depends on specifics. The cost of an orthosis can vary from a few hundred dollars to thousands, depending on the type of device and your insurance benefits.  Evaluations are free.  From there, our financial office will review your insurance benefits and the codes that compose your device, and will give you a detailed estimate of your potential cost.  These are only estimates.  Insurance carriers reserve final payment decisions until a medical review is conducted, and unless pre-authorization is required, such a review only occurs after a claim has been sent (which is typically after you have received your device).  Please direct any financial questions to the financial office.  Our practitioners are skilled in many things clinical, but insurance rules and finances are not among them.

The life of a device is very dependent on how it is worn.  Some braces need to be replaced yearly while others can last for several years, needing only minor maintenance.  We suggest following up every six months to determine how well your device is functioning.