Prosthetic intervention effects on activity of lower-extremity amputees.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the effect of prosthetic interventions on the functional mobility of lower-extremity amputees.


METHODS
Crossover with repeated measures.


METHODS
Household and community environment.


METHODS
Twelve transtibial and 5 transfemoral amputees.


METHODS
For transtibial amputees, shock-absorbing versus rigid pylons. For transfemoral amputees, C-Leg versus Mauch SNS knees.


METHODS
Daily activity level (step count) and duration (minutes of activity).


RESULTS
Pylon type had no effect on the daily activity level or duration of transtibial amputees. Knee type had no effect on the daily activity level or duration of transfemoral amputees. Transtibial amputees were more active on weekdays (3079+/-1515 steps/d) than weekends (2386+/-1225 steps/d) (P=.007). In general, lower-extremity amputees perform numerous short-duration bouts of activity (1-2 min) consisting of fewer than 17 steps/min, but activities of more than 15 minutes in duration were relatively rare (<1 per day).


CONCLUSIONS
Intervention had no effect on amputee activity level and duration. Higher weekday activity levels of transtibial amputees suggest their vocational activities are more demanding than recreational activities. The fitting, alignment, and design of prosthetic components should be optimized for 1 to 2 minute bouts of activity consisting of only a few dozen steps.
Klute
Glenn K
GK
Department of Veterans Affairs Center of Excellence for Limb Loss Prevention and Prosthetic Engineering, and Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98108, USA. gklute@u.washington.edu
Berge
Jocelyn S
JS
Orendurff
Michael S
MS
Williams
Rhonda M
RM
Czerniecki
Joseph M
JM
D000328:Adult; D000671:Amputation, Surgical / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D001186:Artificial Limbs; D018592:Cross-Over Studies; D006801:Humans; D007720:Knee Prosthesis; D007866:Leg / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008838:Microcomputers; D008875:Middle Aged; D011474:Prosthesis Design; D016037:Single-Blind Method; D016138:Walking / Q000502:physiology*