MS Patient Able to Walk Thanks to Walkaide

Imagine having the ability to walk, after 25 years of relying on canes, walkers and mobile carts to get around.

Ann Addis, 59, a multiple sclerosis patient in Madison, Wis., has accomplished this, thanks to support from Angela Longmore, a certified orthotist, who helped her gain access to a new device called WalkAide®. Longmore’s facility, Actra Orthotics and Prosthetics, is one of the only providers that offers WalkAide in the state of Wisconsin.

“The WalkAide® is like a miracle to me,” Addis said. “It requires no special shoes, no ankle foot orthoses and I can even go barefoot with it.”

Addis first noticed symptoms of MS when she was 24 years old. In 1986, she had her first major attack, which left the right side of her body weak, causing a foot drop. “I originally had tingling in my legs,” she said. “The doctors told me one out of every five people develop MS from this. I am one of those people.”

WalkAide®, an Innovative Neurotronics, Inc., system, treats drop foot, a condition that makes walking a challenge. The disorder causes a person to drag their foot or develop a high-step walk. It is small, self-contained and uses the highest grade of electrodes, making skin irritation a problem of the past.

Addis wears the WalkAide® from morning to night. It helps lessen fatigue and distributes the “work” throughout her muscle groups. “I have always been a confident person,” Addis said. “But I definitely noticed a huge change in my self-confidence with WalkAide®. I can do so many things that I was not able to before and I don’t have to rely on others.”
To strengthen her muscles, and for exercise, Addis started physical therapy once a week. In conjunction with physical therapy, she does certain exercises twice a day, every day, to help further her progress.

“I had to learn how to walk all over again because I was actually walking incorrectly before the WalkAide®,” Addis said. “The exercises are definitely helping. My strength is coming back. I even found that when I have the device off, I walk a little better now.”

“I hope people out there know about it,” Addis said. “I tell everyone I see. I want people to have this experience. I have a long way to go, I’m sure, but I am really looking forward to the next couple of months and how much better I will become.”