For many people, asking for help can be hard to do. It requires facing the reality of missing a limb, which can lead to difficult emotions like shame, grief and self-doubt. Accepting help can also fuel fears of becoming a burden, or losing your independence. But a visit from a peer visitor or another amputee can not only ease these fears, but it can also help you find the answers to questions you’re not even ready to ask yet.
Updated 08/2016 –
Over the past decade, technology and research have greatly expanded the functionality and aesthetics of prosthetic feet. Today, amputees have a wide array of feet from which to choose.
Last updated: 12/07/2014 –
by Bill Dupes –
Of all prosthetic components, the knee system is arguably the most complex. It must provide reliable support when standing, allow smooth, controlled motion when walking, and permit unrestricted movement for sitting, bending and kneeling.
Last updated: 12/07/2014 –
by Jack E. Uellendahl, CPO –
If I were to ask a room full of amputees what the most important feature of their prosthesis is, I am certain that comfort would be high on the list of responses. Without comfort, the most technologically sophisticated components become useless. At the most basic level, comfort within a prosthetic socket is achieved by good pressure distribution and the management of friction (shear) forces. Prosthetic socks and liners are the interface materials in contact with the residual limb and are integral to the comfort of the prosthesis.
Volume 21, Issue 1 January/February 2011 –
by M. Jason Highsmith, DPT, CP, FAAOP, James T. Highsmith, MD, and Jason T. Kahle, CPO –
Fitting a prosthesis is complicated because parts of the human body are used for tasks for which they are not designed. The skin/prosthesis interface is at fault for many complications. Here, a synthetic material, such as silicone or plastic, is in constant contact with the skin. Skin is not well-suited for this type of material contact. Skin problems are one of the most common conditions affecting lower-limb prosthetic users today. Skin problems are experienced by approximately 75 percent of amputees using a lower-limb prosthesis. In fact, amputees experience nearly 65 percent more dermatological complaints than the general population.
Volume 21, Issue 1 January/February 2011 –
by Scott Cummings, PT, CPO, FAAOP –
It is the goal of most every lower-limb amputee to walk “normally” again. In the context of this article, “normal” is defined as a symmetrical gait pattern that falls within the “average” range in terms of posture, step length, rate of speed, limb positioning, etc. But being a lower-limb amputee resents many different challenges when it comes to ambulating safely and without exerting excessive energy.
Volume 19 · Issue 4 · July/August 2009 –
by Kevin Carroll, MS, CP, FAAOP, and Randy Richardson, RPA –
People who have experienced limb loss know that it only takes a moment for your life to be completely redefined. Yesterday, you were standing and walking. Today, you are in a hospital bed or a wheelchair. Tomorrow – well, tomorrow is uncertain and hard to even think about. Any amputation is life-altering, but people with bilateral above-knee amputations face a particularly complicated process of physical and emotional rehabilitation. The long-term goal is usually being able to walk again with prosthetic legs. However, even after months of rehabilitation, many people lose confidence that they will ever walk comfortably and independently. What can bilateral above-knee amputees do to increase the likelihood of getting their feet back on the ground? They can follow a graduated, four-step approach to becoming a prosthesis user.
Last updated 01/2008 –
In order for an individual living with a limb difference or amputation to return to their family and/or workplace, they must be accurately fit with a prosthesis that matches their own anatomy; one that is constructed in such a way as to maximize their current or potential physical needs and activity level.
Volume 15 · Issue 1 · January/February 2005 –
by Douglas G. Smith, MD –
In discussing amputations of the lower limb, we’ve noted that each level has its own specific characteristics and challenges. The higher we move up the leg, the more joints are affected. A transtibial amputation involves the loss of the foot and one major joint, the ankle, while the transfemoral amputation involves the loss of two major joints, the knee and the ankle. Because transfemoral amputees are learning to cope with the loss of two major weight-bearing joints while transtibial amputees are learning to cope with the loss of only one, transfemoral amputees face more challenges learning to use a prosthesis and learning to walk again.
Volume 15 · Issue 1 · January/February 2005 –
by Christina Skoski, MD –
One of the most common complaints of new patients who have had an amputation through any part of the pelvis (known as hemipelvectomy or transpelvic amputations) is discomfort and difficulty in sitting upright. This is because they’ve lost the “sitting bone,” or ischium, which provides the bony structure or support on the amputated side. Constantly leaning to one side because of this missing support can cause low-back pain and may contribute to the development of functional scoliosis (an abnormally curved back) over time.
