Feature
Retail Sales Case Study
How do the concepts discussed in the feature article apply to anactual O&P company? This Case Study provides a practicalexample. A couple of years ago, an O&P practice, Step Ahead O&PLLC, (fictional name) had many patients who needed foot orthotic...
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Innovations
A New Concept in Above-Knee Socket Design
By Al Pike, CP
Figure 1 During the 1940s and 1950s, the most common typeof socket for the above-knee amputee in the United States was anischial containment socket (ischial tuberosity within the walls ofthe socket) called a "plug fit" or "anatomical" socket. The...
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Leading EDGE
Billing: Keep Your Eye on the Ball!
By Joe Sansone
Last month, I recounted a story of the discoveryof a file cabinet with over $800,000 worth of unsubmitted claims.What follows is an account of what we did to make sure somethinglike this never happens again. Many of us have learned the hard way th...
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Cutting EDGE
Talk Before You Sweep!
By Greg Mattson, RTPO
Welcome to the first installment in a series ofarticles presenting real-world solutions to production problems inthe O&P fabrication lab. As insurance reimbursements shrink andthe cost of doing business grows, it's hard to ignore the potentialprof...
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Salute!
Big Hearts Help Chilean Amputee
Eddy Leopoldo Fuentes, CPO, protects the liners on Waldo's residual limb with clear plastic film before casting. Fuentes used fiberglass for casting, which he likes because its plasticity enables him to apply the desired tension. On Friday, Septem...
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Stepping Out
Medicare Therapeutic Shoe Bill: A Synopsis
By Séamus Kennedy, BEng (Mech), CPed
The Medicare Therapeutic Shoe Bill was enacted by Congress inorder to provide proper footwear and inserts for people withdiabetes who qualify under Medicare Part B. The program wasdesigned to prevent lower limb ulcers, amputations, and othercompli...
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Profiles
Fred “Kurt” Pauloz, CP
Ortho Pro Associates Plantation, Florida How long have you been involved with O&P? Eleven years now. I got involved after I lost my leg and a good friend who was a prosthetist said, You ought to think about doing this.
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Perspective
Pedorthics: Both Art and Science
By Séamus Kennedy, BEng (Mech), CPed
Conversations at cocktail parties usually follow astandard line of questioning. Living in Manhattan affords me theopportunity to participate in this protocol frequently. Normallypeople begin with a polite introduction and then ask your name.
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Viewpoints
From the Editor
By Miki Fairley
Despite the continued uncertainty about what willhappen on the Hill on competitive bidding and what will come out ofthe Negotiated Rulemaking Committee meetings, the O&P fieldcontinues to forge ahead. The recent AOPA National Assembly in Chicago a...
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Feature
Retail Sales: Is There a Place in Your Business?
By Randy Schmitke, CPA, MBA
Should we get more aggressively into shoes? Should our company grow into the area of post-mastectomy?
Would it be beneficial to our business and our patients if we carried some soft goods and walking aids in our offices?
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Otto Bock Health Care, Minneapolis, Minnesota,
announces the Delta Twist", the latest improvement
in prosthetic shock and torque absorption.
The Delta Twist is the only product to offer
independent control of internal and external rotational motion in
combination with vertical shock absorption, providing an easily
interchangeable system of elastomer inserts to customize the
product to fit the wearer's needs.
"We're excited to offer this unique, new product to our
customers," said Peter Nohre, prosthetic market manager. "The
system offers the flexibility to provide softer internal rotation
during early stance phase combined with a firmer, more gradual
external rotation towards toe-off. The result is a more natural
gait with less compensatory movements and stress on the residual
limbthe best of both worlds."
For more information, contact:
Otto Bock
Customer Service
800.328.4058
www.ottobockus.com
Prosthetic Design, Inc., of Clayton, Ohio has
recently been awarded US Patent Number 6,361,569. This patent
includes claims for the invention of the Guide
Grooves that are located on the upper housing of
PDI's Xtreme" locks (part numbers X-PSH &
X-PSH-R). The Guide Grooves are designed to aid in
plunger pin insertion into the locking mechanism as well as to
prevent socket rotation. Socket rotation is prevented by mating
the Guide Grooves with PDI's patented DERO
(anti-rotation) socks.
For more information, contact:
PDI
800.459.0177
www.pdiwins.com
The College Park TruStep®
Foot offers an anatomical, multiaxial design with
polycentric motion. This foot/ankle system restores a more natural
gait and enhanced physical capacity to casual walkers as well as
sports enthusiasts.
The TruStep Foot responds to ground reaction
forces much like a natural foot does, providing the user freedom of
motion in all three anatomical planes. This results in a more
symmetrical gait and a reduction in energy expenditure for the
user.
Improved parts like the midstance pad and front and rear bumpers
offer increased durability as well as noise abatement features,
making the TruStep Foot the most practical,
comfortable foot for amputees of any activity level.
For more information, contact:
College Park Industries
17505 Helro Drive
Fraser, MI 48026
800.728.7950 " 586.294.7950
www.college-park.com
Hosmer, a Fillauer Company, is pleased to
introduce a new off-the-shelf, body-powered 4-Function
Wrist. Its minimal length is easily hidden in the forearm.
The benefits of incorporating flexion/extension and
pronation/supination function in high-level upper extremity
prostheses have been widely known.
With this option, high-level transhumeral, shoulder
disarticulation, or bilateral clients increase their work envelope
and functional range to include activities at the midline,
essential for daily living.
Until now, creating a body-powered wrist that allowed this
function involved borrowing locks, cables, springs and buttons from
existing componentry in a piecemeal fashion.
Two reciprocating locks are activated with bump switches at the
wrist and forearm to secure wrist flexion and rotation
respectively.
For more information contact:
Hosmer, A Fillauer Company
800.827.0070 " 408.379.5151 " fax: 408.379.5263
hosmer@hosmer.com " www.hosmer.com
To make the Cool-It Cold Therapy
System more attractive and easier for customers to
transport, Seattle Systems has redesigned the product so that the
external pump is now flush with the external housing. The extension
hose now has quick disconnect features at both the pump and the
blanket, and all external parts pack neatly inside the product's
casing.
The new Cool-It Cold Therapy System's compact
size and light weight make it ideal for use at home, while it
offers the same quality standards used at hospitals and
rehabilitation clinics.
Prescribed to help reduce both pain and swelling due to injury
or surgery, the Cool-It Cold Therapy System is
both safer and easier to use than traditional ice packs and other
thermoelectric devices.
Available for use with the Cool-It: Seattle
Systems' blankets come in many shapes and sizes and are constructed
from the highest quality materials to allow for excellent
conformity, limited condensation, and continuous delivery of
cooling solutions.
For more information, contact:
Meg Hall, Prosthetic Product Manager
Seattle Systems
800.248.6463 x.8946
mhall@seattle-systems.com
www.seattle-systems.com
Introducing many styles to choose from: The
Standard S.W. Ankle Brace, Extended S.W. Ankle Brace, S.W. AFO
Style Brace (with extended footplate), S.W. Weight-bearing
Brace, and the S.W. (PTB style) Brace.
The South West Ankle Brace is one of the
leading brands of custom thermo-molded ankle braces made for
non-operative management of posterior tibial tendon dysfunction, as
well as many other foot and ankle pathologies.
Clinical Conditions:
- Posterior tibial tendon dysfunction (PTTD)
- Ankle arthritis or D.J.D. (Degenerative Joint Disease)
- Tibialis tendonitis (posterior of anterior)
- Ankle, subtalor, or midtarsal trauma
- Severe pronation or pes planus
- Talocalcaneal varus or valgus
- Post CVA / Polio Syndrome
- Charcot foot deformity
Turnaround time is 3-5 days; suggested L-Codes are:
L-1960, L-2280, L-2275, L-2820, L-2330.
For more information, contact:
Chuck Eral
South West Ankle Brace
480. 332.8120 fax: 480.664.3521
www.pttd.com
Introducing Fillauer Flexies, the
next step in flexible orthotic ankle joints. Two elastomers of
different durometers are bonded together with a proprietary
molecular bonding process to create a more durable, yet pliant
joint. The stiffer inner core provides long-lasting resistance to
stretch and bending reinforcement without affecting the smooth,
malleable motion. The tapered shape and durable material eliminate
the need for fabrication dummies. The new joint geometry also
increases strength and resists twisting with a square cross
section. Give it a try on your next free-motion AFO.
The Fillauer Flexie Joints are now available
through Fillauer and Fillauer distributors.
For more information, contact:
Fran Varner-Jenkins
Fillauer Inc.®
2710 Amnicola Highway
Chattanooga, TN 37421
423.624.0946 " fax: 423.629.7936
info@fillauer.com
www.fillauer.com
The Summit" Lock by Coyote Design is the first
prosthetic lock to truly control rotation. A strapconnected to an
attachment which is glued to the fabric of a gel lineris fed
through a hole and into the lock mounted on the outside of the
socket. The attachment is mounted proximally rather then distally,
thus requiring zero clearance and taking pressure away from the
point of injury. The entire lock is constructed of lightweight
non-corrosive materials, making it maintenance-free, durable, and
waterproof. The Summit Lock is ideal for any
activity or patient weight.
For more information, contact:
Coyote Design
800.819.5980 " 208.736.8671
www.coyotedesign.com
Aquilim" is an excellent alternative for
bonding most all materials used in the production of orthotics. The
two-step process of heating, then adding pressure, bonds these
materials, and has many advantages over traditional solvent-based
adhesives:
- More cost effective
- No VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds)
- Dries clear
For more information, contact:
Atlas International
800.545.6287
www.atlasortho.com
NEW PHONE NUMBERS!
916.858.3322 " fax: 916.858.3318
NEW ADDRESS!
11389 Trade Center Drive
Rancho Cordova, CA 95742
The new F5 Ferrier Coupler with a
female pyramid receiver provides prosthetists yet another option
for providing patients with a quick changing self-aligning device
to quickly change prosthetic feet or knee-shin systems. The device
incorporates a female pyramid receiver on the distal aspect of the
male portion of the coupler. Now, angular adjustments are possible
to the distal portion of the coupler without the expense of
additional components.
For more information, contact:
Ferrier Coupler, Inc.
810.688.4292
www.ferrier.coupler.com
sales@coupler.com
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