Wheelchair Sizing Guidelines

Seat Width Sizing

Sizing the seat width is probably the most important consideration when determining the best sizing of a wheelchair. The rule of thumb for choosing the seat width on a wheelchair is to measure the width of the user's hips when seated and adding 2". If a user's hip width is 16" than a 18" seat width should be chosen. The rational for this measurement "rule" is the user will need room for a coat.

In actuality, the seat width rule may have to be adjusted due to a few different factors. One is the arm style chosen; the pictured seat frame has arms mounted outside the width of the seat whereas a wheelchair with fixed arms has the arms mounted within the seat width. A removable arm wheelchair fits less tightly than a fixed arm model and the seat width can be a little narrower.

Secondly, most wheelchair users don't spend very much time outdoors when heavy coats are required and 2" of added width isn't usually needed.

Third, the closer the tops of the wheels of a wheelchair are to the user, the easier it is for the user to propel the chair. Any added seat with can actually impede propulsion and sometimes it is better to be a little narrower for function.

Generally, as long as there isn't any pressure caused by the arms of the wheelchair on the hips of the user and they can wear a light coat comfortably the seat width will be appropriate.

Seat Depth

Seat depth for a wheelchair is usually better if it is equal to the distance from the back of the user when seated to the back of the knees less about an inch. The more seat depth, the more the user's weight is distributed on the seat and the more comfortable the seat will be. There shouldn't be any pressure on the backs of the knees when they are at 90°.

If the user is going to use their feet to propel the wheelchair then a little less seat depth should be chosen to prevent rubbing on the backs of the knees.

Back Height

The back height of a wheelchair seat frame can be anywhere from 8" to 20" or higher. Normally you want to try and keep the back height in the area of the bottom of the user's shoulder blades so the arms are not restricted when propelling the wheelchair but people with good upper body strength will often opt for a lower back and those who are lacking in upper body strength and balance may require a higher back height.

A consideration to remember when choosing a back height is the the thickness of a wheelchair cushion will have to be added to the desired height. so if the desired back height is about 16" and the cushion chosen is 1½" the overall back height of the wheelchair will have to be about 17½".

Wheelchair Seat Height

Seat height is more about function than comfort. Ideally the seat height will put the user at a height that will allow them to work at a table or desk comfortably and enabled transfers to toilets, commodes, beds and other chairs and also provide enough ground clearance for the different types of terrain the user may travel over. When discussing seat height in respect to wheelchairs, the seat height of the chair does not include the thickness of the wheelchair cushion. So, if you need a 19" seat height and your cushion is 2" thick you would order a wheelchair with a 17" seat height.

Wheelchair Footrest Length

As with seat width and depth, footrest length determination begins with the user's seat height. When sitting with their legs hanging straight down from their knees and feet flat on the floor the user's seat height is measured from the bottom of their heel to underside of their thigh at the back of the knee. From this measurement we subtract the thickness of the wheelchair cushion when compressed the wheelchair user will be using (usually 1" to 3"). This gives us the distance from the front edge of the seat upholstery to the foot plates we will need.

If the footrest length doesn't allow for enough ground clearance you have a couple of options for compromise. One, you can choose a footrest with a smaller hanger angle. Hangers are the bars which the foot plates are attached to and hanger angles are normally 90, 70 or 60 degrees for most models of wheelchair. A 90° hanger, sometimes referred to as a 90/90 footrest hanger, is perpendicular to the seat or 90 degrees to the seat. A 70° hanger is angled at about 70 degrees when measured from the floor and 60° hangers are measured at 60 degrees from the floor. The second option is to use the adjustments available on many wheelchairs to change the position of the casters and rear wheels which will change the ground clearance but this will also change the seat height.

Overall Wheelchair Size

I'm often asked what is the overall size of a wheelchair? Well, there are as many different sizes of wheelchairs as there are different sizes of people. The overall width of a manual wheelchair will be 7" to 9" wider than the seat width. So a wheelchair with a 18" seat width will be around 26" wide overall. Today's power wheelchairs will be a little narrower as the power wheelchair's smaller drive wheels are usually under the seat instead of beside the seat.

Overall length of a wheelchair can really vary depending on the size of the wheels, the type of footrest or legrest, the style of the wheelchair frame and any accessories such as headrests that may have been added. In general the shortest adult wheelchair is probably going to be around 36" and the longest can be over 72".

Related Sites:

| AccessRamps.ca | Ceilinglift.ca | Liftchairs.ca | Patientlift.ca | Porchlift.ca | Scooterlifts.ca | Stairlift.ca | VanRamp.ca | Wheelchair.ca |

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