The effect of prosthetic rehabilitation in lower limb amputees

The objectives of this project were to ascertain whether, to date, the views concerning the determination of prosthetic candidacy have been optimal and whether the training methods applied have been effective and have resulted in constant use of the prosthesis after conclusion of the training programme. Secondly it was intended to set up guidelines for future budgeting as well as providing a reference framework for the process of rehabilitation. An inquiry based on questionnaires was the first phase in a quality assurance project carried out among 29 amputees trained in 1990 and 1991. The result of the inquiry was that rehabilitation using PTB prostheses for 19 trans-tibial amputations in 18 cases (one patient was a bilateral trans-tibial amputee) led to constant use of the prosthesis and that advanced age was no hindrance to constant use in this group. For 10 trans-femoral amputees the inquiry revealed that advanced age combined with problems of donning the prosthesis was a hindrance to constant use in two cases. It is concluded that there is a need for testing/developing new types of femoral prostheses. The patients' evaluation of the rehabilitation process and their prostheses stresses the need for communication between the team of professionals and the patients in the decision process concerning the provision of a prosthesis as well as the provision of complete information on the patients' future functional possibilities. Qualitative measurements must include the kind and number of medical complications and the social conditions of the amputee as well as tests of physical and mental resources.