Factors Affecting Compliance with Lower and Upper Extremity Orthoses in Patients with Disability Due to Neurological Diseases

Abstract

Orthosis is frequently used in individuals with disability due to neurological diseases. Non-compliance with the orthosis is an important problem in these patients. However, studies examining the factors affecting orthotic compliance are limited. The aim of this study is to examine the factors affecting compliance with lower and upper extremity orthoses in individuals with disability due to neurological diseases. Material and Methods: Orthosis compliance of 45 patients who were previously recommended lower and/or upper extremity orthosis and followed up for neurological rehabilitation was questioned. In addition, the relationship of factors such as age, gender, height, weight, duration of disease, diagnosis, clinical stage of the disease, reasons for non-compliance with the device, occupation, education level, residence, what floor their house is on, whether there is an elevator in the building they live in, the number of physiotherapy sessions they receive per year, the duration of home exercise they use, the walking aid they use, the type of orthosis prescribed, the time their orthoses are prescribed, affected extremities, and ambulation status of patients with orthosis compliance were examined. Results: Device-related reasons were found to be significantly more common than other reasons, among the reasons for leaving the device in patients who were offered lower extremity orthosis and did not comply with the device. The rate of use of upper extremity orthosis was found to be negatively related to disease duration and orthosis prescription time, and positively related to age. Conclusion: It has been determined that the most important factors affecting the orthotic compliance of patients using orthoses are device-related reasons. In addition, patients' disease duration, age, and orthosis prescription duration are also associated with orthosis compliance. These results should be considered during prescribing, orthotic manufacture, and patient follow-up.