By: Barney, Perez, Laurel, Evan Perez, Jacob, Hendricksen, Jacob Barney, Evan, Laurel Hendricksen
A well-recognized complication associated with hip replacement surgery is the dislocation of the hip joint following surgery. The risk of dislocation is highest in the first few months following surgery. To reduce risk of dislocation, the patient is required to wear a metal hip abduction brace. The function of the brace is to regulate flexion, extension, and abduction (forward, backward, and sideway) movements in the hip. The aim of this project is to develop an alternative design to current post-operative hip braces, presented in the form of a mockup. The main specifications were to remove the metal pieces and replace them with a fabric design, while maintaining functionality. We hypothesize the outcome of these changes would improve the ease of wear of the brace and the overall comfort of the hip-surgery patient.