Hanger Clinic reports that its patient Peter Goldblatt is the first individual in the US to be fit with the company’s C-Brace orthotic bracing system. Hanger, headquartered in Austin, Texas, notes that the new bionic leg bracing system, which has yet to be launched, aims to improve the ability to walk in individuals such as Goldblatt who have sustained paralysis as a result of incomplete spinal cord injury (SCI), post-polio syndrome, and other debilitating conditions.

Hanger Clinic compares the C-Brace to the Ottobock C-Leg device, a hyrdraulic system that provides a prosthesis to amputees that is intended to function as close to a natural leg as possible. The C-Leg parallels the device in that it also uses microprocessors and sensors to assist in controlling the gait cycle, however contrast to the C-Leg, the C-Brace can be used for those with paralysis.

A Hanger Clinic news release notes that during the 8-month testing of the device, Goldblatt has not fallen, no longer experiences knee pain, has not hyper-extended his knee, and is walking with a more normal gait. The C-Brace will not be made available on a widespread scale until later this year, Hanger says, however through its partnership with Ottobock, Minneapolis, Minn, in testing the device, Hanger Clinic patients have been provided the opportunity to benefit from the new technology.

According to the release, several media organizations including ABC, CBS, and the Sarasoat Herald-Tribune have featured Goldblatt and the new C-Brace.

For more information, visit http://www.hanger.com

Source: Hanger Clinic