A Partial Weight Bearing Reminder Device for Rehabilitation After Lower Extremity Surgery

Annually, in the United States there are roughly 352,000 incidents of hip fractures [1], 300,000 total hip replacements, and 270,000 total knee replacements, most of which are in adults over age 50 [2]. During rehabilitation, patients who have undergone total knee or hip replacement, cartilage cell transplant, cruciate ligament replacement, meniscus debridement, or complex fracture repairs may be instructed to restrict weight bearing. Partial weight bearing (PWB) includes everything from toe-touch to strict PWB (10–50% of the patients’ body weight), to full weight bearing as tolerated [3]. The restrictions following a hip replacement with a cement-less implant typically require a 6-week PWB regimen [4].