Why are footrests important?
Author: Sharon Jang | Reviewer: Emma M. Smith | Published: 25 May 2020 | Updated: ~
Footrests (or leg rests) are an important part of a wheelchair. They function to stabilize your legs for optimal hip and back posture, help promote redistribution of sitting pressures, and may promote circulation. Footrests come in a variety of options. Footrests may be fixed (as one plate or two), swing-away (i.e., can be moved away from the front or removed), or flip up (particularly in powered wheelchairs). Elevating footrests allow for the leg to be in a raised position, which may help alleviate some leg pain.
Having a foot rest that is too high may result in more pressure on your buttock.15
The length of the footrest hanger (i.e., the distance from the back of the knee to the heel) can impact how you are seated in the wheelchair. Having a footrest that is too short will push your knees upward, so that the bottom of your thighs are no longer in contact with the top of the seat cushion. As a result, more pressure is applied to your sit bones and there is a lessened ability to shift your weight backward if you slide forward. On the other hand, a footrest that is too long may result in sliding forward in the wheelchair. Consequently, someone with a footrest that is too long may tend to slide forward often in their chair, leading to a hunched back.
Some weak evidence suggests that footrests can affect how activities of daily living are performed, but not the types of activities performed. The use of footrest may help improve the sitting balance of individuals with a lumbar SCI, but not those with a thoracic SCI.