Doctor develops brace that puts spring in user's step

jan hogan/viewMitchell Warner, owner of Ortho Rehab Designs, 2578 Belcastro St., Suite 101, displays an old-style brace. Warner designed a brace that allows a patient to walk with a more natural gait than what was possible wearing the old models. Advertisement

Mitchell Warner knows the importance of being flexible. He fits people with prosthetics and orthotics.

As owner and clinician of Ortho Rehab Designs at 2578 Belcastro St., Suite 101, Warner has developed a leg brace -- the Helios leg brace -- that is lightweight and strong and has a dynamic energy release component that will help give the patient a spring effect.

ORD recently added injured soldiers, fresh from the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan, to its roster of clients.

The active-duty soldier's goal, he said, is to return to the battlefield.

Easier said than done. The soldiers are required to carry 80 to 100 pounds on their backs.

"The Helios needs to be battle-ready for them and meet these very tough conditions in design and function," Warner said.

He said that he could not reveal any specifics.

The Helios leg brace is not rigid, and it allows the foot to flex with more natural movement.

Old braces were stiff and boot-like. Warner picked up one to demonstrate.

"This old kind, it's made with technology from the 1950s," he said.

In contrast, the Helios brace, made with carbon fiber material that gives more, is especially helpful when addressing one's mobility. One of his clients, despite having a neuromuscular disease, ran a marathon in the updated braces.

Herb, 79, who asked that his last name not be used, flew to Las Vegas from Iowa to be outfitted. He learned of ORD's braces from the Mayo Clinic. He has Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, also known as peroneal muscular atrophy. CMT is a group of disorders that affect the motor and sensory peripheral nerves. It causes muscle weakness and loss of feeling.

A man who once enjoyed hiking in the Alps, Herb now shuffles along, leaning on a three-pronged walker. The walker brought with it problems of its own; Herb has to hunch up his shoulders to use it, often resulting in backaches. Immobility puts him at risk for pressure sores and exacerbates the muscle atrophy that comes with the disease.

Herb demonstrated using the walker and how, even standing still, he had balance issues that caused him to throw out his arms for corrections, a posture he called "windmilling."

Herb then put on the lower-leg braces. Immediately, he was able to walk unassisted.

"It feels great," he said. "I've noticed I'm able to stand straight for a long time ... five minutes or so without any windmilling."

Warner came up with the design in 1997 and has been perfecting it ever since. He holds multiple patents for bracing designs and prosthetics and custom-fits each one to his clients. Some designs for the foot and leg incorporate a subtle springboard function called "dynamic release."

"It helps accelerate the foot forward," he said.

The lightweight braces feature a crisscross design to better replicate the body's muscular system. Each of Herb's weighs 12 ounces.

"It helps prevent further deformities because the joints now take on the heavy load," Warner said.

Warner sees clients as young as 2, but most range from 30 to about 65. The majority of his clients are people with some type of neuromuscular disease.

Edward Neumann, a professor and director of the Center for Disability and Applied Biomechanics at UNLV, is studying the Helios brace to determine the forces and motions on the joints in the leg -- hip, knee and ankle -- as well as measuring a user's walking speed, step length and cadence.

The first time he and his crew saw it, Neumann said, "We were impressed by how much patients said they liked it and the visible improvement in gait when it was worn. We were also impressed by its aesthetics -- just the right amount of material in the right places. Braces that store and release energy are cutting-edge technology in the world of orthotics, and we were excited when we got the chance to study the Helios."

The custom-made braces cost $6,000 for one leg and $12,000 for a pair. A running style runs $14,000 a pair.

ORD was established in 1991 and formerly was near the corner of Rancho Drive and Charleston Boulevard. It relocated to The Lakes area in 2005.

For more information, call 388-9909 or visit ordesignslv.com.

Contact Summerlin and Summerlin South View reporter Jan Hogan at jhogan@viewnews.com or 387-2949.