Chaussures orthopédiques

Orthopaedic shoes are prescribed in an attempt to treat not only a deficiency but also an aesthetic or a locomotor handicap. Because of improved medical and surgical treatments, they are less indicated than they used to be for poliomyelitis and paediatric orthopaedic foot wearing, but new indications emerge, such as the diabetic foot. The improvement of techniques and materials have completely changed the old image of these orthopaedic devices that are no longer heavy and uncomfortable but much more functional and aesthetic. Prescription is based on a precise diagnosis of the pathology and its functional consequences, and on a good relationship between the patient, the practitioner and the pedorthist. Orthopaedic shoes provide multiple solutions for correcting, stabilising or unloading the foot, but the selection of this or that kind remains based on personal experience rather than on scientific evidence. The development of inside-shoe pressure sensors should help assessing the real efficacy and indications of such orthotic devices.