Hi everyone, I have foot drop following a hemorrhagic stroke 7 years ago which paralysed my left side. I walk with a stick and use an Fes machine. I have recently read an article about a Saebo Step and was wondering if anyone on here has used one of these and what you thought.
Regards Sue
Hello Sue,
I have a weakness that I hope will not develop into foot drop. My physio and Chinese dr. say no, but I am not so sure. At what stage after your stroke did foot drop manifest ? was it always there, or did it arrive later ? The future scares me. Thx in advance, and good luck,
ciao, Roland
Hi Roland, my foot drop has been there since day one.
Regards Sue
Thx Sue,
I don’t know about saebo step, but i have seen a few people with a brace
i understand the calf muscles eventually overcome the tibialis anterior, causing the problem. I’d love to hear any solutions or fixes that help with foot drop…
very best wishes, Roland
Hi @Susan_Jane
I can’t offer any direct experience of the saebo step either but I have bought seabo products and I would make two observations
1 is they are a lot lot more expensive than equivalents on Amazon and eBay and
2 that is made up for if you need, ask for and get support. I bought an e-stim and Amy there in house clinical person gave me a lot of support so it was cheaper in the long run than buying a cheap one and independent PT
There are a lot of foot drop devices. Some are plastic and springs and others have an FES (functional electrical stimulation device built in. The FES devices of which there are several have been talked about here but you will need to do some searches to find the relevant posts.
I think I have heard the best things of the bioness l3 00 from memory. it’s very expensive but turns up second hand in MS communities - here’s a mixed review on one of their websites
Let us know how you get on
Caio
Simon
Thanks Simon. Haven’t decided what to do yet, I currently waiting for a custom made AFO that I have been measured up for at the National Hospital at Queens Square in London. I have an appointment to collect it and make sure it’s ok on 2nd May, so I will decide what to do then. If I do go for the Saebo Step, I will post and let you know what I think.
Regards Sue
I haven’t personally used the Saebo Step, but have used other Saebo products, some of which were useful and others which became very expensive white elephants! I did try an FES many years ago, but couldn’t get on with it. I should think Saebo might let you try it before you buy. Why don’t you ask them.
I have a whole cupboard full of AFOs, most of which I have tried and abandoned. My problem is that I have weakness (and some spasticity) in my ankle, knee and hip, so even with an AFO, ground clearance is still fairly minimal.
AFOs can also be rigid or soft. I prefer the soft ones because they mean your whole foot can still move and stretch.
It also depends on your level of footdrop. Mine is not as bad as it once was after 10 years of exercise, in fact, now I can get away with just Kinesiology tape most of the time.
Hello Minnie,
Please may I ask you, what exercises does one do for foot drop ? What factors weaken the ankle / what factors strengthen it ?
As far as I know it’s a battle between the 2 calf muscles and Tibialis Anterior. Opposing Antagonist/protagonist forces, if you like… I have invented an exercise routine I call X-frame which calls for CORE strengthening. It changes (in a positive way) the attitude and orientation of the whole leg, and helps, as a by-product, to rotate the foot from external / to internal attitude, helping to eradicate the weakness of foot drop at the same time. It’s the most remarkable and helpful routine I’ve come across, (and the idea did not originate with me entirely).
ciao, Roland
This is informative discussion in that AFO means ankle foot orthotic - IE a collection of plastic and foam etc that assists.
Some of them include FES functional electrical stimulation timed to leg movements that seeks to help the muscles do the right sort of contractions and extensions at the right time.
But the restoration of function to walk properly requires muscles and nerves to be operating correctly which would suggest to me that exercises that are appropriate to the stage in your post stroke development are the only real recovery route. FES might speed that recovery? AFO masks or reduces the inconvenience of not having recovery
I wonder (suspect) that may be an AFO slows down motivation from need , and so hurts result and promotes the least desirable forms of neuroplasticity ?
The seabo step is circa 150 quid and a very similar looking device on Amazon is 19.95! The step requires punching holes in shoes. The Amazon one doesn’t. The snazzily named sabo tool is 35 quid; an enormously more complete kit is available on Amazon for around 12 to 14! (Search punch set and snap)
I have a sabo glove - the the rubber bands to stretch the fingers are v. expensive - exactly equivalent o-rings from b&q or Amazon are pennies. My saebo FES cost over £200 superior ones on Amazon are about 35! These are prices the NHS and the insurance companies swallow. It’s like NASA’s satellite adjustment tool that cost $500 was a £1 Allen key if bought from a hardware store.
However as I said above a couple of hours of Amy’s time over zoom made up the FES costs. The glove cost is just sunk and the glove languishes in a box having not been even vaguely useful
I alluded above to timing (stage of recovery). I think that’s a very important topic - I was given exercises 3 years ago that I’m just about becoming equal to now. The prescribing of entirely inappropriate or unreachable exercises without explanation served to demoralise me. I suspect for many it is part of the self-fulfilling prophecy of you only improve for 6 months bullshit. Exercises that work at the liminal boundary of capability are what is needed and if successful will shift that boundary day by day so will need amending week by week.
My conclusion is charting the path to recovery needs an awful lot of separation of themes, eg undisclosed commercial interests removed
Hi sue im new on here and still settling in, so im still searching through the messages… hence my late reply. But yes i did try the saebo step. It wasnt for me , it slid down my leg too easily when i cranked up the tension butit was well engineered and i could put it on one handed which is more than i can say for the boxia equivalent. Ive got a few saebo products, the stretch hand splint the saebo glove and 2 stims, ive found their service to be great and they accept returns with no problems at all, which is what i did with the saebo step, their after sales service is great too speaking to real people who know what theyre talking about and honouringb their warrantees… In short id give it a go and just return it like i did if it doesnt work out for you, they refunded my money straight away.
Im still not sure what im doing when i try to post a reply on this site ( and in most other things too! But this in meant to be a reply to roland’s post about exercises for foot drop. Although mimy foot drop has not gone away its vastly improved in the last few months i still use afos outside but losing them is my next goal with my lower limb physio. Getting my foot to lift was the best day in my rehab journey at the time.
I achieved movement partly by chance whilst sliding my foot back.and forth on a kids skateboard whilst sitting and trying to strengthen my hamstring. I put both my feet under the skateboardto try and lift it from the floor and then one foot at a time to just get it to move a little After a few goes i could lift it with my bad foot. I then progressed to hanging small wrist weights on my toes and lifting them whilst sitting on a chair with my heels on the floor. A great feeling and i still think back to that moment when im trying to force my arm and hand to cooperate. Good luck john
And you have replied to Roland correctly 
You can tell by his picture and user name appearing in the top right corner of your reply.
This is a fantastic exercise for the foot, John. ; you have inspired me to do it ! My Chinese dr. suggested ages ago rolling my foot over a bottle on its side, which is the same movement. Thank you so much for your story, it has helped me a lot…
ciao, Roland
Similar exercise can be done with a football or tennis ball and then you can move in two axis…
Hi Everyone, definitely lots to think about. I have my appointment at the National Hospital at Queens Square tomorrow, so I’ll see how I get on with my new AFO.
I have also tried using a small skateboard to move my leg back and forwards but unfortunately I can move my leg forward but cannot pull it back. My private Neuro Physiotherapist also suggested using a squash ball and putting my foot on it and rolling it around.
Thanks for all your thoughts and advice. I’ll post and let you know how it goes tomorrow.
Regards Sue
Yes i use a small lacross ball and a 4kg medicine ball ( frommiddle of lidl)to roll around with my foot too, sometimes in standing for balance. Theskateboard was good for me at the time because i could get my foot to stay in place when my leg was very weak and it allowed me to get some hamstring activation and strengthening when pulling it back towards my chair it was the start of a fairly successful hamstring strengthening campaign to improve my ground clearance when walking
Yep of the trick is to find the thing that works for you at that point of capability development that just challenges you and as you continue to use it it will cease to be at the liminal edge of your capability and then you need to change
Caio
Simon
Hi everyone, just a quick update on my new 4 D custom made AFO. Had my appointment at the National Hospital at Queens Square London yesterday to pick up my new equipment.
Just need to get used to it now. Must say I had forgotten how different it feels when you srart using something new.
The Orthotist and the neuro physiotherapist that I saw also thought it would be helpful if Ihad some physiotherapy to help with my walking gait and using this new AFO. They have actually written to my GP, asking them to refer me to our local Neuro Rehab Team. Very impressed with my treatment 
Onwards and upwards everyone, have a good weekend. 
.
Regards Sue
Well done sue im certainly jealous of the service you get in london i have benefitted from the services of an orthotist and neuro physiotherapist who specialises in post stroke gait but in my area of wales this is not available on the nhs and comes at the cost of £110 p/h for physio and £600 for an AFO. But what better to spend money on than your health? Im pretty happy with my walking progress and ive been a wholeyear without wheels now. I have a chance to trial an Alfess FES AfO soon to assist my "weaning "myself off my splint. i think the alfess afo is relatively new but looks quite streamline and may assist my transition to walking unassisted! I may try the bioness h200 on my hand too whilst im in the mood to be stimmed! Anyone used the alfess or the bionessh200 ? Good luck with you new brace sue i hope it works as well as mine does. John
Hi John and thanks for your comments. I have never heard of the Alfess Fes Afo but it sounds very interesting and I’m sure someone here will have some experience of that particular machine. I have used an Oddstock FES Pace since my hemorrhagic stroke in 2017 and have tried a number of different AFO’s during that time. Good luck with the trial, I hope it goes well for you.
Regards Sue
