Ambulation aid use during the rehabilitation of people with lower limb amputations

Our objective was to describe the progression of ambulation aid use by people with lower limb amputations during their initial rehabilitation. We prospectively studied 37 people with recent lower limb amputations and a mean (SD) age of 68 (13) years. Subjects were evaluated each weekday during gait-training physiotherapy sessions, and the type and order of ambulation aids used during ambulation training were documented. The total number of gait-training sessions that we observed was 605, with a mean (SD) of 16.4 (7.7) sessions per participant and a range of 5-47. Of the 37 participants, 33 (89%) were discharged with prostheses. The mean (SD) number of aids per person was 2.9 (1.0). The percentage of participants who used each aid (presented in the mean order in which they were first used) were 76% parallel bars, 60% four-footed walkers, 81% two-wheeled walkers, 11% two crutches, 8% four-wheeled walkers, 46% two canes, and 14% one cane. People with lower limb amputations generally use a number of ambulation aids in a fairly consistent order as they progress through their initial rehabilitation. These findings have implications for the process of providing ambulation aids and provide a foundation for further study.