Knee Ankle Foot Orthoses (KAFO) are often prescribed for clients who present with knee flexion instability. At St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne, this pathomechanical gait deviation is commonly seen in neuromuscular disorders such as poliomyelitis, multiple sclerosis and the late onset muscular dystrophies.

Stance phase control orthotic knee joints have been a recent development for the Prosthetic and Orthotic profession. These joints provide knee stability during stance phase and allow knee flexion during swing phase. Prior to their introduction, clients with significant knee flexion instability had to walk with a KAFO that did not allow knee flexion during the gait cycle.

This paper will present Mr B, a 71 year old gentleman, who contracted polio as a child in Australia. The acute episode caused mild residual left lower limb weakness but he had been able to ambulate safely throughout his adult life, without the assistance of orthoses or gait aids. In 2005, Mr B presented for his annual review in the Polio Services Victoria clinic and his gait had deteriorated significantly. He complained of progressive muscle weakness in the left limb, pain in the right hip and regular falls.

This case study will outline the successful prescription of a KAFO that incorporated a stance control knee joint (E-Knee, Becker Orthopedic, USA). It will also outline how the use of orthotic diagnostic tools aided prescription and demonstrate improvements in temporal and spatial gait characteristics with a Stance Control KAFO.