Beyond Amputation: Functional Restoration after Upper-Extremity Limb Loss

Several factors have contributed to poor quality of life outcomes for upper-extremity amputees. In recent decades, the advancements in both surgical procedures and prosthetics have been aimed at both improving the function and quality of life of amputees. Targeted muscle reinnervation, regenerative peripheral nerve interfaces, agonist-antagonist myoneural interfaces, free tissue transfers, and limb transplantation are chief among the surgical options available for improved sensorimotor function in residual and prosthetic limbs. New technologies such as cuff electrodes, intraneural filaments, and various osseointegrated prosthesis systems are used either alone or in concert with these operative techniques. Procedural and technological advancements will continue to push the limits of functional restoration after upper-extremity limb loss.