Namaste. I hope everyone enjoyed their weekend.

Disclaimer: In these pictures, it may look like I am struggling, but I am not. This orthosis actually gives great support, hence why I have my thumbs up lol. 

This week we started a new class, Orthotic Management of the Spine. So far, we have learned about the different types of spinal orthoses and which kinds are used for which pathologies. There are so many variations characterized by design, organization, where the pathology or fracture is located (ex. Lumbar fractures, cervical, etc.) and so much more. Surprisingly, it is easy to grasp the concepts about how the material can help prevent any further damages to the spine, or which orthoses will be for the lower spine versus the ones that are for the cervical area or thoracic spine, just by looking at the orthotic device when it is placed on a patient. We got to try on some of the orthoses on our peers and move with them to see what types of orthoses will prevent those movements. I’m not going to lie, I think I need a spinal orthosis for myself. I kind of like the LSO because it’s comfortable. It’s the support for me lol.

I can’t wait to dig deeper! Peace and love.

-Onny

What’s up peoples! I hope you had a wonderful week. T’was fun for me.

On Monday we started our Total Surface Bearing socket casting, which is supposed to be a much easier socket than the one we did last week. This time, we met with a new patient model who had three amputations (one on his left arm, two lower limb) and I found him truly inspiring. Me and my group members were more interested in his story and started our casting late lol. On Tuesday and Wednesday, we did the cast pouring and alignment for the cast. This time I did not make a chisel mark on the side of my socket, so it was a success.  On Thursday, Blatchford Orthotist and Prosthetist came in and talked about the different types of hydraulic feet and how they work. In the afternoon, our patient models came back for the fitting, while we used Blatchford’s Hydraulic ankles for the foot component. The ankle adjustment was most definitely more challenging than using a regular SACH foot, but it was very rewarding to see the outcome. It feels like everything I am learning here is starting to come together.

Ok, I have a final next Tuesday, goodbye… for now.

Adaeze O. Mbagwu

We’re already halfway through the month of February and learning so much from Mr. Mahairas! It’s been a busy semester as we’ve recently learned how to fit fracture braces, identify proper bracing using various joints and mechanisms, and back to the lab fabricating our ground reaction ankle foot orthotics (GRAFOs). This week we will be casting each other and learning the trying trials of fabricating our own knee ankle foot orthotics! More to come from the class of 2021

-BD

GRAFO Photos!

Annyeonghaseyo (meaning hello in Korean)! It would have been better if I knew Hangul or the Korean alphabet more. I hope everyone had an awesome week. And congratulations to the Bucs for winning the Super Bowl! Yayyy!

It’s the fifth week into the semester and things are moving quickly. Time is flying by. Graduation and board exams are tomorrow. Just kidding. This week felt short and long at the same time. We were only in class for 3 days of the week, but the days were long, and also felt short because we were super busy and focused on our project, you know what I mean? This week we finally met with our patient models and I enjoyed every minute of it, even the struggle parts lol. I met with a super nice patient model who had their right leg amputated due to some complications. One thing that really touched my heart when meeting the patient model was the positivity. It made me want to become a practitioner that gives hope to their patients and gives them strength to carry on.  After meeting with our patient models and casting their limbs, the next day we poured our cast to form the shape of the patient’s leg. LeOnny Davinci was back and ready to turn these pour cast into beautifully, sculptured limbs. We did a few modifications on the cast and then created the sockets. I am so excited to see how the sockets turn out despite mess ups and I am also excited to practice more with casting and pouring in the future.  This was a great learning experience for me.

I will see ya later. Bye… for now.

-Onny/ LeOnny da Vinci

Kedu ka ị mere? As we say in the Igbo language meaning “how are you?”. I hope everyone had a wonderful week! Black History month started, and this weekend is also exciting because the super bowl is this Sunday! What team are you rooting for?

Anyways, of course, we like to get down to business here at IIOP. Clinical rotations and graduation are around the corner and there is no time for play. Well maybe graduation is a couple of blocks away, but you get the gist. We started the new course learning about prosthetics, which I am super excited about! It was nice to know how the prostheses are made based on K-levels or how active the amputee is. We also did some more patient evaluation because it is super important to know what to say to a patient, and how to describe the procedures. Most importantly because next week, we will be working with patient models. We also learned how to wrap a patient’s limb with ACE bandages and carefully put on shrinker socks. We covered topics relating to different foot and ankle amputations and all of the cool prosthetics that can help with patients’ balance. I did not know that big toe amputations can affect the patient’s balance. So, they make prosthetic toes to assist their walking. I think that is awesome.

While y’all watch Super Bowl, I will probably be studying and waiting for the halftime performance.

Anyi g’afu! (meaning ‘See you later’ in Igbo) Bye!

-Onny

Week 4 – – – IIOP

First Semester

First month down of my cohorts first semester! It has definitely been an adjusting process for me and my 4 classmates as we are getting used to the graduate school life. We are currently enrolled in four classes: Anatomy and Physiology, Pathology, Neuroanatomy, and Clinical Gait Analysis. Lots of information to keep up with, but having a cohort of 5 keeps us all on our toes and really pushes one another to keep up (even when we just want to go home and watch all the movies we talk about at lunch).

Pathology has definitely been one of my favorite classes. Learning about different abnormalities a person can have has made me a bit of a people watcher outside of school. I am now quick to catch any major genu varus abnormality or a pelvic tilt. But it is not just me! Every now and then, the phone buzzes with a message from our group chat that someone has spotted something new.

Finally, we had our first assessment in our Gait Analysis course. Come to find out, I have a slight anterior pelvic tilt and Peter has a depressed right shoulder. Who would’ve known?

Happy Superbowl weekend!!

Best,

Savanna Stumpf