Purpose- The purpose of
this study was to determine whether the energy-conserving design of the Seattle
Foot permits more normal gait kinematics, dynamics, and energetics compared
to the conventional SACH Foot in congenital, unilateral, below-knee amputees
walking at their preferred speed.
Specific goals were: 1) to compare the energy cost of walking when wearing the
SACH or Seattle Foot; 2) to quantify the mechanical advantages of the energy-returning
characteristics of the Seattle Foot in terms of the work done in gait; and,
3) to investigate the compensation strategies used by amputees when walking
with prosthetic feet.