Drop Foot Brace with Reel-Adjust Dorsiflexion Assist

This thing's really cool. Our physical therapists wondered where we got it to resolve the drop foot.

Works great had stroke and it works great with sketchers shoes

UPDATE: The cable (which connects the shoelace clip to the ankle strap) broke at the clip side after a mere nine days of use. Since I got a lot of benefit from it, I will continue the hunt for a more durable version. (I liked the easy-to-use dial to take up the inevitable slack caused by tugging on shoelaces, but if I can't find one which uses a thicker cable, I will just have to learn to use a less-easy-to-adjust version with a hook-and-loop strap (vs. a thin cable).)---Original review:About 25 years ago, I was in a beginner yoga class and the instructor had us interlace our fingers, stretch our arms above our heads, and walk around the room on our tiptoes. I was able to do all of that except the tiptoeing part which left me confused. Since it was not an exercise I'd done for a decade or three, I wondered when I lost the ability to stand on my tiptoes and decided to talk with my doctor who referred me to a neurologist who confirmed that I had Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease which -- as I understood it -- would find the muscles in my extremities (probably the ones which would have allowed me to stand on my tiptoes) atrophying over time.That prediction has, more or less, come true over the last 25ish years with my needing a cane or a hiking staff when I walk (running is out of the question) because my left foot (and sometimes my right) will drop and my toes will catch on the ground and the cane/staff will help keep me from eating concrete/asphalt/trail. The other part of the solution is for me to lift my thigh high in the air when I step so that the toes of my dropped foot will swing clear of the ground. If I'm paying attention, this operation goes well. If I'm daydreaming, it does not and I (usually) can catch myself by quickly lifting that "caught" leg and flinging it forward and leaning on my cane/staff in the process. That "recovery" usually frightens people around me as my foot slaps the ground.A few days ago, a neighbor asked if I wanted to learn to play pickleball. I reminded him that I cannot run and he said that running was not an integral part of the experience, so his wife and I were doubles partners and he played single on his side. I loved it. Of course, if a shot was too far for me to get to by walking, I just let it go (vs. trying to run for it and tripping over a dropped foot).I'd left my cane in the car, but that evening, I wondered if pickleball can be played by folks using a cane, so I searched for something along those lines and found a disability forum where someone asked that same question. There were not a lot of answers, but two of them stood out to me:- Pickleball can be adjusted to accommodate those with varying abilities. So folks who use a cane or a walker or a wheelchair are absolutely capable of playing pickleball. Of course, some courts/players may have to adjust things to make that happen, but it's definitely possible.- One commenter suggested that the original poster look for a "dorsi flexion ankle device".I was familiar with an AFO (have one and it would rub my Achilles tendon, so I stopped using it), but had never heard of this device, so I searched for it, found a bunch on Amazon, and decided to order a couple (one for each ankle) and see how it went.They arrived the next day and I put one on my left ankle which is the more "droppy" foot. It was incredible. I didn't have to worry about every step I took, wondering if my toes would clear the ground or get caught. I even made a few brief trots around the living room and while it didn't look like running, it was definitely way more than walking.I headed out for my daily mile walk and found that my steps were quieter and less "slappy" than normal, I didn't have to stay hyperfocused on how high I lifted my thigh, I was able to loosen my grip on my hiking staff since I didn't expect to need to rely on it in an instant if I tripped over my dropped foot, and finally, I was able to walk a little faster than my normal, loping pace.When I finished walking, I showered, put them on each ankle, and after a while of sitting at my desk, went to go show my spouse, and noticed that the clips had come off! It took me a while to figure out that over time, the shoelace gets pulled toward my leg by the clip and that I needed to tighten the cable with a half-turn of the knob. Easy to resolve, but important to watch for.I have pretty skinny ankles and had to kind of bunch up the first wrap to get the second wrap to hold everything in place. That was a little disappointing since I specifically measured my ankles at the correct location and they were around 7.75" in circumference, above the 7-inch minimum.As I mentioned above, I was a little surprised that the clip came off the shoelaces, so I may try the version which hook-and-loops on the shoelace so that it stays put. I also don't like how, right now (after having worn these all day), the shoelace is pulled about halfway up my shoe. To keep my laces where they are when I tie my shoes, I may try the version which has hooks that mount on the last eyelets of the shoe and the cable is put over those hooks and then tightened.Either way, these were not terribly expensive and, if one of the above alternatives works better for my needs, then I can see these being a good backup in case something breaks with the alternative. But I'm happy with how they've reduced my level of disability a little bit!

love the new version of the clip for the shoelaces but the velcro needs to be reinforced. it wears out after a couple of months daily use.

The button to tighten the string and provide proper stabilization would not tighten much at all. Product fit and velcro was strong. I will not be using this device.

I've been using this brace for six months with no issues. I have ALS and have some mild drop in both feet. But with the ALS I don't lift my legs very high when walking so these braces really help from dragging my toes on trip hazards. I've had zero problems with the ratchet, cable, hook or velcro. They are very comfortable even with no socks on. I do recommend un-lacing your shoestrings then tying a knot behind the first set of eyelets to minimize the stretch of the shoestring.

Worked well, well made

i've had a few of these and they work well but this last one I had snapped within only a few uses. Very disappointed