Assessment of orthotic needs in Iranian veterans with ankle and foot disorders

BACKGROUND: War-related traumas can lead to orthopedic and neurological disorders in victims. However, the scope of such disorders may expand months or even years after the trauma. Orthotic treatment as a rehabilitation process aims to enable people with disabilities to reach and maintain their optimal physical, sensory, intellectual, psychological, and social functional levels. This study aimed to investigate the rate of using orthoses among Iranian veterans with neuromuscular and skeletal disorders of the ankle and foot. Furthermore, the priorities of orthotic treatment in those veterans were explored. METHODS: This qualitative study was a national health needs assessment conducted in 11 provinces of Iran during 2011–2016. A stakeholder research group was established to survey the veterans in respect to their demographic variables, activities of daily living, current health conditions, and rate of using orthoses. RESULTS: Overall, 907 of the 1124 veteran participants completed the survey (response rate: 80.7%). Most of the veterans were men (97.7%), and their age and disability rate were 52.07 ± 8.13 years and 31.92% ± 14.93%, respectively. Nearly 42% of the veterans had experience in using orthoses on a daily and weekly basis. As physical ambulation was the main problematic activity in veterans, most of them were using medical shoes and foot orthoses. Nearly 37% of veterans were in need of some type of lower limb orthoses on the contralateral side to compensate for their hip inequality. In sequential order, the most in need orthoses for veterans were foot orthoses (n = 538), medical shoes (n = 447), lower limb orthoses on the contralateral side (n = 320), spinal orthoses (n = 273), and upper limb orthoses (n = 86). CONCLUSIONS: In spite of the high demands for orthoses among Iranian veterans with ankle and foot disorders, the use of orthoses is insufficient. Hence, there is a discrepancy between the current rate of orthoses use and its ideal situation, and more resources should be provided for service providers to be able to serve veterans. Moreover, veterans should be educated regarding orthoses, their use, and their impacts on the user’s health status. The findings of a needs assessment of orthoses can be used in strategic planning and decision making to improve health care services for Iranian veterans.