What Goes Into A Prosthetic Construction And Fitting Plus Its Advantages

Posted by Michael Griffin on October 23rd, 2019

We all have seen or know someone with a prosthetic limb, either leg or arm at some point in our lives and maybe start to wonder what the person went through to land up here, how does it feel to wear a prosthetic daily and what is the extent of their motions and abilities now. To better define and help you understand this, a prosthetic is a man-made portable device that can be attached to the person to better help them deal with day to day activities and try to normalize their life as much as possible.

When it comes to arm prosthesis, there are two options available, above the knee and below the knee. This depends on the type of amputation done on the patient. But in certain cases, the elbow is not in a condition that it will be able to withstand the weight of the prosthesis nor will it be able to provide support to the arm. To better understand these things are built, below is a basic step by step process of how one gets their own prosthetic arm in Palm Beach Gardens or other areas with similar amputee and prosthetic hospitals and centers..

Step 1

To start things off, a mold of the current arm is made post the surgery after the swelling has subsided. This is done since no two amputations are the same, hence no two residual limbs can be similar. Every prosthetic made is tailored to the receiver and it is unique to them and cannot fit anyone else. While this process is going on, the doctor who operated on the patient will be consulted on how to better craft this piece by asking them about the position of the veins, bone and muscle location among other things.

Step 2

The receiver will have a prosthetic sock worn over their limb prior to putting on the device. This material is worn to avoid chafing or damage to the skin or any other unwanted scenario. The sock also helps in achieving a better fit and provides some added stability to the whole limb - device contraption.

Step 3

The next step is to fit the prepared mold with thermoplastic sheets on its insides that will better help it to adapt movement when worn by the receiver. This allows for better motions and less wear and tear over time. They will also support the weight of the incoming limb on the prosthetic and limb.

Step 4

Post surgery, the patient will experience some pain and discomfort for a while and putting on the prosthetic sock is supposed to help with the adjustment process, it is recommended that one not put it on before the swelling subsides as that might lead to further pain and an inaccurate mold for the prosthetic. Early application of the sock will lead to ill fitted devices that will cause more pain than comfort and advantage. With mapping devices nowadays that can electronically sketch out your limb in a detailed manner, fittings and comfort have become a lot easier to execute and experience.

Step 5

Once the prosthetic has been made, there will be some fitting sessions wherein the freshly minted device will be put on the receiver to check and see if everything works well and to identify and rectify any issues that may come up. Upon fixing the issues that were identified in the first fitting, another fitting session will be conducted to check if those issues were rectified properly or not. Once the receiver is content with the product, the finishing touches are made to the product. The receiver can also opt for faux skin to put up on the prosthetic as they would prefer to not show the device and have it look as life like as possible.

Advantages

• Increased range of motions
• Better adaptability to life
• Improved body functions
• Ability to hold on to and lift weighted things
• Better menial task execution prior to using prosthetics
• More independence
• Less dependence on others
• General buildup of confidence