MBB

THE FIRST FALL PREVENTION AFO DESIGNED BY A PHYSICIAN, JONATHAN MOORE, D.P.M., MS; AND FABRICATED BY ONE OF THE MOST RESPECTED LABS IN THE COUNTRY, ARIZONA AFO, INC.

Welcome to Arizona AFO®, Inc. and the Moore Balance Brace (MBB), an exciting product that provides Physicians, OP&P practitioners and Physical and Occupational Therapists with the latest tool in fall prevention for the senior population and those at the greatest risk for falls. No single brace or ankle foot orthosis (AFO) alone is the answer for everyone at risk for falls, but the use of braces and AFOs as an integral part of fall prevention has been a concept utilized by clinicians and therapists long before the MBB was created.

Simply stated, there are a significant number of patients that walk into Medical practices everyday who exhibit many of the clinical indications of fall risk; weakness, imbalance, neuropathy, ankle joint instability, ankle osteoarthritis, and more for whom the MBB is designed.  Yet, rarely is any information offered to them. In fact, studies clearly show that most patients at risk for falls either do not know they are at risk, or have never been given the information or tools to aid in the prevention of a potentially devastating fall.

Clinical Indications

  • Difficulty walking and/or maintaining balance

  • Fall Risk

  • Vestibular Disorder

  • Chronic Ankle Instability

  • Arthritic Ankle

  • Stroke Imbalance / Foot Drop

  • Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy

Although there have been AFO products marketed in part as  fall prevention products, the Moore Balance Brace, unique in many  ways,  is the first AFO designed with specific fall risk indications in mind. Here’s proof!

How the MBB can PREVENT FALLS

  • Improves balance and prevents falls by reducing the body's postural sway.

  • Stabilizes the foot and ankle when weakness and fatigue exist.

  • Stimulates skin receptors providing feedback to the brain.

  • Improves foot clearance reducing the risk of tripping.

  • Can help reduce the risk of falling by 30-60%.

Unique Design

The MBB was designed to be lightweight yet durable, easy to put on and take off, fit easily in appropriate footwear, and allow for dorisflexion and plantarflexion during gait. These factors are critical in regards to patient compliance in which a fall prevention AFO is indicated.

2 Years in The Making

The MBB has been two years in research and development, tried, modified, retried, and fine-tuned, until the right design was established. The MBB is currently being studied using several standardized fall risk assessment tools, along with the oversight of a Certified Occupational Therapist (OT), a Podiatric Physician (DPM) and a Certified Orthotist (CO). So far the results are amazing. It can now be said with certainty that the MBB is the best AFO product on the market for fall prevention. Stay tuned to see our findings published soon.

Easy to Fit, Easy to Wear

The MBB is all about making it easy for the elderly and those at greater risk for falls to wear an AFO. Due to the MBB’s sleek design and light weight, the MBB is easy to wear. The MBB has been designed to easily fit into a variety of shoes. The type of shoe used with the MBB is important and should not be left to the patient alone to figure out. There are many light weight stability shoes that are viable options for seniors and those at greater risk for falls. Care needs to be taken to make sure that the MBB is not being used in a house shoe, slipper, or with no shoes at all.

The National Safety Council estimates that persons over the age of 65 have the highest mortality rate (death rate) from injuries. Among older adults, injuries cause more deaths than either pneumonia or diabetes. Falls account for about one-half (50%) of the deaths due to injury in the elderly. Several epidemiological studies have looked at the rate of falls in the elderly at home, in outpatient settings, and institutions;

  • Among 65 year-old women nearly one in three (30 percent) will fall; after age 85, over half of women will suffer a fall.

  • For men, the proportion who fall increases from 13 percent in the 65 to 69 age group to a peak of 31 percent in the 80- to 84-year age group. For those over the age of 85 there is a slight decrease.

  • It appears that for the elderly living at home one-third to one-half tend to fall or do fall. Those who are more aged, female, single, divorced or widowed have an increased rate of falling.

  • In the younger, healthier elderly, environmental factors are more important, with stairs and floor obstacles being common causes of falls.

  • For the older, sick elderly, falls are often associated with dizziness and syncope (brief loss of consciousness, or "passing out"), cardiac and neurologic disease, poor health status and functional disability.

SUGGESTED L-CODES:

  • L-1940

  • L-2330

  • L-2820