The Scotty Sock

Clinical Problem

Achilles tendinopathy is a medical condition of the foot that affects the Achilles tendon, the tendon joining the heel bone to the calf muscle, often due to overuse. It is a relatively common injury in athletes or active bodies. Achilles tendinopathy has been a growing issue for the last three decades as people are pushing to become more fit and active [10]. This condition involves pain, weakness, swelling, irritation, and stiffness. Current treatments consist of a regimen of rest, ice, pain medications, rehabilitation exercises for strengthening and stretching, night splints, braces, athletic tape, and surgery. Our design team’s vision is to create a device that can be worn during daily routines that will both alleviate the pain and actively rehabilitate patients with Achilles tendinopathy.

Anatomy and Physiology

The Achilles tendon or calcaneal tendon is the body’s largest and strongest tendon. The Achilles runs from the posterior calcaneus up to the gastrocnemius and soleus muscle tendons of the calf (Figure 1 and Figure 2). The Achilles is made up of fibrous tissue that includes collagen I (up to 80%), elastin, and fibrin (roughly 2%). It anchors to the calf muscles and then run to the heel, where it is cushioned by the bursae, or small sacs of fluid [11]. The entire tendon is surrounded by paratendon or a sheath like body of single layer cell tissue. The tendon itself is comprised of many different cells 90-95% tenoblasts and tenocytes, with the remaining cells consisting of fibrochondrocytes, synovial cells, endothelial cells, and smooth muscles cells. This network of cells creates a matrix where collagen fibers span the length of the tendon, and tenoctyes and tenoblasts span the gaps between each fiber [10].