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Freedom Leg Looks About 1,000,000x Better than Crutches
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Odin
11/11/09

In reply to Freedom Leg Looks About 1,000,000x Better than Crutches
But without crutches how can you do crutch sword fighting? #freedomleg
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Purple Dave
11/10/09

In reply to Freedom Leg Looks About 1,000,000x Better than Crutches
Crutches haven't changed in the last 1000 years? Not so! For instance:

1. They did a split upright, allowing a centered horizontal handgrip to be placed between them. Old-old-school crutches just had you grip the shaft, and new-0ld-school crutches just made a handle stick out from the side of the single shaft.

2. They made them from lightweight materials instead of wood.

3. Rubber tips for traction.

4. Adjustable for both height and arm-length.

5. You have to buy them instead of just cutting them out of the closest tree. #freedomleg
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ninjagin
11/10/09

In reply to Freedom Leg Looks About 1,000,000x Better than Crutches
I saw the post on medgadget last week. It looks like a neat idea, but you've got to strap yourself into this rig very tightly. Chafing anyone? It looks fine for walking around, and who likes crutches, anyway, right? Yet, if you have to go between periods of moving around and periods when you're seated or lying down, crutches may be easier. Crutches are also helpful for leverage as you're standing up, moving around while seated, or reaching for things. As much as I like the new-fangled, crutches meet the need, and are simple and cheap. I guess it's nice to have another option to crutches, regardless, though. #freedomleg
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Noobs-R-Us
11/10/09

In reply to Freedom Leg Looks About 1,000,000x Better than Crutches
Runn Foressst Runnnnn!

Seriously though, this thing will cut off the circulation in your thigh no? Your foot will slowly die, rot and fall off.
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Edited by Noobs-R-Us at 11/10/09 10:13 AM Noobs-R-Us was starred Noobs-R-Us was unstarred

NurseDave
11/10/09

@Noobs-R-Us: Problem solved? #freedomleg
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Scott Muller
11/10/09

@Noobs-R-Us: Your thigh and the rest of your leg are supplied blood by the femoral artery which is deeply buried next to the bone. It takes an incredible amount of pressure to cut off circulation from this artery, much more than you could achieve with this wide cuff. #freedomleg
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Noobs-R-Us
11/10/09

@Scott Muller: Then why do people's leg turn white and hurt when they do this? #freedomleg
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Hello Mister Walrus
11/10/09

In reply to Freedom Leg Looks About 1,000,000x Better than Crutches
Looks like the strap would slowly and uncomfortably creep up towards your crotch. Whenever I try that on other people, it always ends poorly. #freedomleg
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met2art
11/10/09

@Hello Mister Walrus: And walking on crotches is painful. #freedomleg
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weatherman
11/10/09

In reply to Freedom Leg Looks About 1,000,000x Better than Crutches
It definitely looks awkward and uncomfortable, but perhaps less so than a normal crutch and it certainly improves mobility. It is surprising that it has taken so long for anyone to come up with a simple hands-free redesign for the crutch - it's not like this involves space age materials or microprocessors or anything. #freedomleg
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PurpleMonkeyDishwasher:
11/10/09

@weatherman: I think part of the reason is that crutches are very simple and extremely effective in their current state and there hasn't been much drive to make them better. For what they do, they are cheap and and get the job done. #freedomleg
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weatherman
11/10/09

@PurpleMonkeyDishwasher: certainly true, and they can be made from readily accessible materials so they're great for developing countries. But in places with advanced medical care, like Canada, it seems to me it's a long time coming to find something better. #freedomleg
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suburbancowboy
11/10/09

In reply to Freedom Leg Looks About 1,000,000x Better than Crutches
Pre 9-11 this was called a French Leg. #freedomleg
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GitEmSteveDave_Isn'tFreshPerked
11/10/09

In reply to Freedom Leg Looks About 1,000,000x Better than Crutches
Well, the only problems I can see are that since the leg isn't supported completely around, everytime you swing it forward, it hits that strap, which is a jarring motion, despite how slight it is. I know you need SOME motion/vibration for bone to regenerate, but that seems like a little much. With a regular crutch, you swing your leg, which is a way smoother motion.

I also think that gait is a little unnatural. And locking the tendons/muscles in that on position and not letting it flex forward is going to tighten them up, which will make the transition back to non-crutches harder, IMHO. #freedomleg
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PurpleMonkeyDishwasher:
11/10/09

@GitEmSteveDave_OverSleptThisMorn: You are right about the unnatural gait, although this is certainly also true on crutches. Over longer periods of time that could lead to all kinds of back problems etc. Also, I think the type of bone vibration that you mention might not even be conducive to bone growth. I think it's more the vibrations that come from being load bearing bones that helps them become stronger (this is why astronauts lose a lot of bone mass in space due to the absence of gravity). Also, this design does seem to cut off blood flow slightly which could possibly increase the healing time.
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GitEmSteveDave_OverSleptThisMorn promoted this comment Edited by PurpleMonkeyDishwasher: at 11/10/09 9:31 AM

GitEmSteveDave_Isn'tFreshPerked
11/10/09

@PurpleMonkeyDishwasher: : IIRC, when there is a break in bones, there tiny movements cause a minor charge between the bone pieces, which encourage growth. When my Mother broke her foot, they gave her this special thing which sent ultrasonic vibrations through her foot to help heal.
I do know that what happens after a break is there is overgrowth, and your body then dissolves the over growth because if it didn't, rather than your bones breaking where they should, the extra strength would cause a break somewhere else not intended. Weird! #freedomleg
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PurpleMonkeyDishwasher:
11/10/09

@GitEmSteveDave_OverSleptThisMorn: Yeah that sounds pretty weird. I also heard that when you break a bone in a certain place, it grows back stronger so that future breaks in that same area are more unlikely. Again, I have no medical experience (except for some biomedical engineering classes) though so that could just be a myth because it seems to contradict your theory. Maybe it's just more reinforced or something. Without getting too technical, I know your body can adjust the density of your bones by changing how porous its structure is.
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Edited by PurpleMonkeyDishwasher: at 11/10/09 10:09 AM

GitEmSteveDave_Isn'tFreshPerked
11/10/09

@PurpleMonkeyDishwasher: : Well, it DOES grow back stronger. It's just it then cuts back the bone to it's regular "size" so it doesn't break in some strange way in the future. I remember seeing an animation on TLC, that of course, I can't find now. #freedomleg
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Lassus
11/10/09

In reply to Freedom Leg Looks About 1,000,000x Better than Crutches
The name makes it sound like some traditional crutch somewhere insulted our foreign policy choices.

As an honest question, I'm a little confused about this video specifically. Is her leg permanently damaged, or is she just healing from a regular broken leg? #freedomleg
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BergenCountyJC
11/10/09

In reply to Freedom Leg Looks About 1,000,000x Better than Crutches
Does it use magic? #freedomleg
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B-low
11/10/09

@BergenCountyJC: It's made of Mithril. #freedomleg
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