Verification of the usefulness of shape acquisition using plastic casts during fabrication of a metal strut ankle-foot orthosis.

[Purpose] When fabricating metal strut ankle-foot orthoses, previous studies have reported that shape acquisition is more efficient with a plastic cast than with a plaster of Paris bandage; however, this has not been quantitatively evaluated. This study aimed to clarify the usefulness of plastic casts by quantitatively evaluating the time spent and body shape accuracy among different methods of shape acquisition. [Participants and Methods] We compared the time spent and acquired shapes among the plaster of Paris bandage, plastic cast, and trace methods in 30 limbs of 15 healthy participants.