In this article, we have reviewed the best walking boots for calcaneal fracture. If you are in a hurry, the table below gives a quick snapshot of the top ones.
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As a kid, we all used to love imagining ourselves jumping from tall buildings and landing on our feet, just like the superheroes in comics.
Turns out, that’s a very bad idea. You could get a calcaneal fracture from doing that.
What’s A Calcaneal Fracture?
Our heels have a layer of fat which makes them elastic. But underneath that layer of fat, you can feel a bone that gives shape to the heel. That bone is known as the Calcaneal bone.
When you fall on your heel from a great height or are involved in an accident that causes a similar impact, you are likely to fracture than bone.
Here is a video that explains what a Calcaneal bone is and what a Calcaneal fracture looks like:
Now for some quick facts: Calcaneal fractures account for up to 75% of all foot fractures, and between 1-2% of all fractures. Men, especially industrial workers are more likely to get a calcaneal fracture[1].
This means, it happens a lot and is nothing to be worried about. In most cases, the doctor will recommend a simple surgery to reset the bone.
However, immediately after that surgery, you are required to keep your heel as rigid and stable as possible. The best way to do this is by buying a pair of walking boots. Walking boots are rigid plastic boots, that make the heel and foot immobile, allowing you to move around without hurting the fracture.
There are many options available in the market. This article will help you choose the best walking boot for Calcaneal fracture.
Our Top Choice – BraceAbility Short Toe Walking Boot
The BraceAbility Short Walking Boot - Orthopedic Medical Walker Cast for Broken Toe Injuries, Sprained Ankles, Metatarsal Stress, Post-Op Support Left or Right Foot Fracture Shoe Fits Men and Women (M) is our top choice for Best Walking Boots For Calcaneal Fracture, because of the following reasons:
- Natural rocker bottom design ensures natural movement.
- It is 11 inches from the ground and weighs only 2 pounds.
- It leaves the toe area open that increases breathability.
- Wide footbed for bandaging and swelling.
- The boot can be worn on both, right and left leg as per requirement.
- Velcro straps are made with medical-grade material.
Best Walking Boots For Calcaneal Fracture
#1 BraceAbility Short Toe Walking Boot
This is a great boot and works with different kinds of injuries, sprains, and partially broken ankles and toe. One can use it as a postoperative boot as it has a wider footbed. It is lightweight and has a low profile. It has a rocker design that helps the user to walk naturally and smoothly.
Features and Benefits
- Multi-utility boot: the boot is cynically helpful in treating the fracture, sprain, bunion surgery, ankle injury, and heel bone injury. It makes you walk with ease.
- Comfortable: with a wide toe bed and an open toe design, the boots provide ideal space for bandaging and swelling. All those who have had toe injury or have broad toes can easily use this boot.
- Rocker bottom design: the shoes are designed with a rocker bottom that makes the user walk naturally even after the injury or fracture. It also has a low profile that makes it convenient to use.
- Strong Velcro straps: the Velcro straps are ten-time stronger than standard straps. It stays in a position and does not let the feet move, thus provides stability to the users. The straps are highly adjustable according to the requirement of the user.
- Rigid and lightweight: the polymer plastic material; of the boot makes it strong. Its height is 11 inches, and its design helps to provide support and protection from both the sides of the foot and ankle. It weighs around 2 pounds that makes it easily wearable all day long.
Why should you buy it?
All those with wide feet can use this short toe boot to walk comfortably. It is designed to protect the foot and ankle and help recover from heel and ankle surgery. As it is lightweight, it weighs only 1.95-2 pounds. It can be worn all day long.
You might like to read: Best Walking Boot For Broken Toe
#2 United Ortho Fracture Walking Boots
These plastic molded boots with steel reinforcement provide increased durability to the user. The air bladder offers customized compression to increase comfort and reduces swelling caused by muscle injury. Reaches the knee and offers ideal support for the leg.
Features and Benefits
- Provides natural gait: The rocker sole in the boots helps to walk naturally. This also helps in doing daily activities with ease. Walking naturally makes the user feel better this, in turn, helps in healing faster.
- Ideal for injuries and post-operative procedures: if you are dealing with an ankle sprain, tissue injury, foot, ankle injury, and heel injury, this boot is perfect. It provides stability and support while walking and moving after foot surgery.
- Increased support: the air bladders provide custom compression and increased comfort and support while wearing the boots for a long period.
- Shock-absorbing insole: the orthopedic insoles helps reduce the impact of heel strike when walking. It makes the boots highly comfortable.
- Reinforced design: the plastic body with steel plates, helps keep the leg upright and protects the foot from further damage. A wide footbed provides stability and helps to walk with bandages and swelling in the toe.
Why should you buy it?
The boots have greater coverage right from the toes to the knee. It works for all kinds of leg, foot, ankle, and heel injuries. The straps keep the leg intact and help in doing daily activities with ease.
#3 Air Cast Walking Boots
The Air cast standard walking boots provide comfort, control and heals the patient with mid-foot, front-foot, and forefoot injuries. The semi-rigid shell of the boots provides support and comfort to the user’s leg. With two adjustable air cells and the front panel provides support to the foot and makes movement smooth.
Features and Benefits
- Height: the boot is available in elite, short, and standard foot size. From size small to extra large, all sizes are available. Height ranging from 9.1 inches to 18.2 inches is available considering all three models.
- Helps reduce edema: all those who experience severe swelling in the foot and leg can wear this boot. The overlapping duplex air cell line shell provides three times better compression that helps reduce edema.
- Durable and supportive: the semi-rigid shell acts as a protective gear for the leg. It offers support to the limb by providing fill shell protection to the leg.
- Sleek design with non-skid base: the open frame sleek design of the boots provides perfect ventilation and makes the boots breathable and wearable for a longer period. Its non-skid rubber base makes the boots provide ideal traction and hold the ground well.
- Shock absorber: the soft strike technology helps the boots act as shock absorbers, and the rocker sole provides a natural walking experience.
- Universal fit: the boots can be easily worn in the left or the right leg as per the user’s need. It is easy to wear. The padded structure of the boots provides an extra cushioned feel while doing daily activities.
Why should you buy it?
All those who experience edema must use this boot as it has an overlapping air cell line shell that helps reduce swelling 3 times faster. It has a wider footbed, and the semi-rigid shell of the boots provide excellent support and protection to the leg.
You might like to read: Best Walking Boot For Sprained Ankle
#4 Aircast Short Pneumatic Walking Boots
These short pneumatic walking boots are an ideal choice for foot, ankle, and heel injuries. It has a hard plastic shell that provides improved mobility. The base is highly comfortable and makes daily activities possible without any stress and pain.
Features and Benefits
- Low rocker sole: the low rocker sole makes the boots wearable and makes the user walk naturally and smoothly.
- Hook and loop closure: the boots come with hook and loop closure straps that make it easy to adjust the boots according to the foot size and user issue. Wearing the boots is pretty easy, and with just two straps, the boot embraces the foot easily and makes movement possible.
- Multiple uses: the boots are useful for multiple uses right from fractures, ankle sprains, soft tissue injuries, mid-foot, and forefoot injuries. One can use it after hell surgery too. It is designed to offer protection and support to the foot and makes day to day activities possible.
- Lightweight and universal fit: the boots weigh 1.6 pounds that makes them wearable daily for day-to-day activities. It also provides a universal fit that makes it wearable on any foot, left or right.
Why should you buy it?
This boot is recommended for those dealing with plantar fasciitis as it provides controlled ankle movement and makes the heel relaxed while moving. The boots have a padded cushioning effect that helps heal the heel pain and helps to walk smoothly.
#5 Orthotronix Closed-Toe Walker Boots
The Orthotronix boots have a fully integrated inflatable airliner that provides customized compression and increases the leg, foot, and ankle comfort level. It has a closed-toe design that helps to keep the toes and foot protected.
Features and Benefits
- Extra cushioning effect: the boots come with additional pads that make the boots comfortable and provide a cushioning effect to the feet.
- Breathability: the ventilated panels in the boots wicks away moisture and keeps the feet dry. It also makes the boots comfortable and easily wearable for a longer period.
- Removable toe guard: the toe guard is removable and can be used as per convenience. It acts as extra protection for the toes and the foot. It meets the OSHA standards and makes the boots wearable to the workplace.
- Quick-release straps: the boots are available with quick release straps that make it easy to wear and open the boots. The straps are easy to manage and further make the boots perfectly fitted boots. The hook and loop closure design of the straps makes the straps adjustable.
Why should you buy it?
Choosing this boot for the workplace is ideal as it has a removable toe design. It acts as an additional protective gear for the toes and foot. This closed-toe walker is designed to support the foot, ankle, and toes and prevent it from moving while healing.
You might like to read: Best Walking Boot For Lisfranc Fracture
#6 Superior Braces Orthopedic Walker Boot
The Superior Braces walker boot has a plastic shell casing and is meant to provide additional stability to the foot in the case of stable fractures and post-operative recovery. It is a perfect walking boot for operations such as a calcaneal fracture.
Features and Benefits
- Extra cushioning: The walking boot comes with additional foam pads, so that you can customize your fit. It is available in several sizes, so you can choose as per your foot size.
- Lightweight: The walking boot has a low top, lightweight design, easy on the foot, perfect for stable fractures and post-operative.
- Rocker Sole: The walking boot has a rocker sole. Rocker soles are best for redistributing plantar pressure, so as to make the foot more comfortable and reduce pain.
- Shock absorbing sole: These walking boots are equipped with a shock absorbing insole. Immediately post calcaneal surgery, it is very important to make sure that your heel and ankle are protected from any kind of shock or pressure of walking. This walking boot makes sure of the same.
- Plastic molded upright design: The walking boot uses a plastic molding for giving additional stability to your foot. The upright design ensures that your foot does not move from out of place.
Why should you buy it?
This walking boot has a rocker sole and a low profile design, along with a molded plastic upright design that’s great for stable fractures and post-op surgery
You might like to read: Best Walking Boots for Achilles Tendonitis
Buyer’s Guide: Best Walking Boots For Calcaneal Fracture
Protection
Before buying boots for Calcaneal fracture, the first thing to look for is support and protection. As the heel bone is the heel area’s foundation, the shoes must provide the right amount of protection needed for your feet. Buy shoes that will make you walk freely without putting much pressure on the heel bone.
Breathability
Boots that are made with breathable material are the best for wearing for a long time. You will not only feel comfortable while walking, but your feet will feel free from bad smells.
Make sure the boots have a breathability feature so that the feet remain dry and you feel comfortable while wearing the boots. Boots with the right amount of air circulation will make it breathable.
You might like to read: Best Walking Boot For Sprained Ankle
Light Weight
Always look for shoes\boots that are light weighted and wearable. Carrying the extra weight of the shoes with weak or damaged calcaneal can be risky and unpleasant.
Walking a few steps with weighted shoes can be very painful too. It can further damage the heel bone. Hence, it is better to buy lightweight shoes when dealing with calcaneal issues.
Cushioning
The shoe’s cushioning system plays an important role in making the wearer feel comfortable and relaxed even though he\she has a calcaneal problem.
Make sure the boots you choose have soft cushioning, especially in the heel area. This will help you experience less pain while moving around. Soft cushioning allows you to stay comfortable.
You might like to read: Best Walking Boot For Lisfranc Fracture
Stability
If you are buying shoes\boots for Calcaneal fracture, make sure they provide the perfect stability that your foot needs. Boots must help to keep the feet in position without moving.
Straps help to adjust the shoes according to the user’s requirement. Straps further help keep your ankle in a stable position to offer you a quick heal.
Waterproof
Make sure the boots are either made of plastic or neoprene material. This will not only help to keep your feet dry but will help the user to use the boots in the rain too.
Changing the shoes according to the weather can be unpleasant; therefore, make sure that walkingboots are made with waterproof material.
You might like to read: Best Walking Boot Cast
Frequently Asked Questions: Best Walking Boots For Calcaneal Fracture
How do boots help heal calcaneus fracture?
Boots do not let the broken or the injured area of the foot to move. Boots with stiff sole, plastic body and steel reinforcement help to protect the foot. It also helps to support the foot and provides a smooth walking experience with rocker soles.
Does wearing boots help heal the pain?
The boots that are designed for heel injuries provide additional support that the heel needs. Wearing the boots all day long will help heal the injured part and help reduce swelling and pain. Many walking boots are also known as healing boots as they act as protective gear for calcaneus fracture.
You might like to read: Best Walking Boot For Peroneal Tendonitis
Conclusion
Calcaneal fracture if left unattended can become a severe problem. If you have any foot injury or prolonged pain, visit a doctor and wear a walking boot to alleviate the pain.
In our opinion, the BraceAbility Short Walking Boot - Orthopedic Medical Walker Cast for Broken Toe Injuries, Sprained Ankles, Metatarsal Stress, Post-Op Support Left or Right Foot Fracture Shoe Fits Men and Women (M) is the best choice among the various options that we have considered, because this is a great boot and works with different kinds of injuries, sprains, and partially broken ankles and toe. One can use it as a postoperative boot as it has a wider footbed. It is lightweight and has a low profile.
The United Ortho Air Cam Walker Fracture Boot, Medium, Black is our next best choice because these plastic molded boots with steel reinforcement provide increased durability to the user. The air bladder offers customized compression to increase comfort and reduces swelling caused by muscle injury.
If you are looking for a value for money option, you can also consider the Aircast SP Walking Brace - Small, which offers great value and features at a very reasonable price point.
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