A comparison of axillary, elbow and Canadian crutches.

Crutches can be used by patients with injuries to the lower extremities in order to perform 'swing-through' gait. Because axillary crutches have been associated with axillary artery thrombosis and crutch palsy, they have to a large extent been superseded by elbow crutches. Canadian crutches combine many of the features of axillary and elbow crutches, and a study of the three types suggests that they have advantages in terms of energy cost.