Effect of Ankle-Foot Orthosis on Paretic Gastrocnemius and Tibialis Anterior Muscle Contraction of Stroke Survivors During Walking: A Pilot Study

Ankle-foot orthoses (AFOs) have been commonly prescribed for stroke survivors with foot drop, but their impact on the contractions of paretic tibialis anterior (TA) and medial gastrocnemius (MG) has remained inconclusive. This study thus investigated the effect of AFOs on these muscle contractions in stroke survivors. The contractions of paretic TA and MG muscles were assessed in twenty stroke patients and compared between walking with and without AFOs, using a novel wearable dynamic ultrasound imaging and sensing system. The study found an increase in TA muscle thickness throughout a gait cycle (p > 0.05) and a significant increase in TA muscle surface mechanomyography (sMMG) signals during the pre- and initial swing phases (p < 0.05) when using an AFO. MG muscle thickness generally decreased with the AFO (p > 0.05), aligning more closely with trends seen in healthy adults. The MG surface electromyography (sEMG) signal significantly decreased during the initial and mid-swing phases when wearing an AFO (p < 0.05). The TA-MG co-contraction index significantly decreased during initial and mid-swing phases with the AFO (p < 0.05). These results suggest that AFOs positively influenced the contraction patterns of paretic ankle muscles during walking in stroke patients, but further research is needed to understand their long-term effects.