Abigail's getting a new brace

As most of you know, Abigail wears a brace on her left leg to help everything stay properly aligned as she grows and gains strength in that leg (because of her CP). As you can imagine, the brace needs regular adjustments to keep it properly fitted on her growing foot and ankle, and then, when it can't be adjusted any more, we get a new, bigger one made! Yesterday we went to have the mold taken for her new brace and I thought we'd share the process with you.

Many thanks to Aaron @ Children's Healthcare of Atlanta's Orthotics & Prosthetics for taking such good care of us -- she has been with us since Abigail's very first brace!

First, Aaron marks Abigail's ankle & foot bones with a special pencil that will transfer the markings to the inside of the mold. Special care is taken with the new brace to make sure that these spots will not rub and irritate Abigail's skin. Next Aaron slides on a thin sock and then wraps Abigail's foot and leg with this material that will then stiffen in the shape of Abigail's leg. (The tube allows the stiffened mold to be easily cut off of the leg).

After a minute or two, the mold is ready to be cut off. Now we wait three weeks for fabrication of the brace, then we'll go back in to have it fitted and Abigail will walk out wearing her new brace!


Abigail and Aaron