Kneeling

To make kneeling possible without damaging your prosthesis, there is a kind of rubber ball that the prosthetist may be able to add to your prosthesis around the knee area.

Better feet for women?

I have an endolite multi-axial foot. I have had this for about five years - I have had two over the course of this time due to getting a new prosthesis primarily for socket fit. I have had no problems or required any maintenance on the foot - which I've heard others say is a problem. Hasn't been for me. This multi-axial foot is excellent. Compared to the basic foot I had before it is great for what I wanted - better ability to walk on uneven terrain such as hiking or on cobblestones, or hills/ramps. It combined with the Mauch SNS knee has allowed me to do things I thought impossible related to inclines, terrain, etc. The other thing I've found very good about it that is probably more relevant to females, is that is works well with all shoe types. I've had feet where the shoes slip off unexpectedly or where shoes gape out on the sides or are impossible to get on and off. I believe this foot comes specifically in a "female" version. The first one I had was not quite right - the prosthetist had to grind it down and reshape it to get it to work normally with my shoes. I spoke with Endolite directly and they thought I did not have the female foot. My prosthetist however never acknowledged this though the next foot I got - same endolite, multi axial foot - had none of the previous problems."

Various tips from a long time amputee

Hello, I am an amputee of many years and here are a few tips I have learned over the years:
1. On cold days warm the socket with a hair dryer
2. Rub powder into the socket (don't just sprinkle it) and this will help pulling in.
3. Wash the valve out with warm water on sweaty days, it stops bacteria growing and keeps the o-rings good.
4. Sometimes the knee cap on my Endolite squeaks so i rub the inside of it with soap.
5.Rub any belts with powder often this will help stop chaffing.
6. Wash out the socket frequently with warm water, with no soap as this makes your stump grab on the sides. And give the container a rub down now and then with isopropyl alcohol.
7. If you get any blisters use only an antiseptic cream( savlon or detole) and they will usually be gone next morning
8. Silicone liners should be washed every day

One of our web site visitors recommends a product called EZ-IN. It is produced by DAW industries San Diego California. the product code is GEZIN-xx.This product is a Teflon "pull bag that assist you to put on your prosthesis easily. For this person it has proved much easier than other methods and is much easier on his residual limb.
Another person comments "That EZIN thing you show - I have just tried this with new socket I am having made. It is excellent. I did pull sock thing for many years, then had TEC liner which did not use any pull in method. New socket I am getting will not have any liner or silicone suspension so have to do this pull thing which I thought was a disadvantage. This EZIN makes it much quicker and easier."

It is almost impossible to get the alignment correct, until the socket fits well. A socket that does not fit well, will tend to go on a little differently each day. This will cause the alignment to be incorrect from day to day. Therefore, it is very important to achieve a very tight fitting socket that can be put on the same way every day. Once you have achieved this (no easy task), then fine tuning the alignment for optimum walking performance is much easier.

If you have a silicone sleeve system, especially at first, the number of socks you need to have on is not always obvious. You need to have a very tight fit, but sometimes a problem with the socket does not allow you to get this tight fit without causing discomfort or the socket tends to rotate on you.

This is an indication that the socket has problems that are asymmetric. In other words, the socket needs to be indented here, or filling needs to be added there, etc. These are tougher problems than just an overall too tight fit or too loose fit. These kind of problems require analysis from both the amputee and the prosthetist to come up with the correct solution.

For above knee amputees, any little problem with the prosthesis can be very annoying and tend to greatly affect how the amputee walks. For that reason the amputee will most likely need to spend much time working with his/her prosthetist to get the prosthesis "just right".

One recent email to AboveKneeAmputee.com addressed walking up and down stairs. With A Mauch SNS knee, the amputee said that he could go down stairs normally (foot over foot). This is because the Mauch knee will only release when toe pressure is applied. Therefore, by carefully keeping your weight on the heel of the foot, the amputee can "ride the hydraulics" down. In other words, the hydraulics will let the leg slowly bend at the knee.

When going up stairs, the amputee found that the best method for him was to take two stairs at a time with the sound leg, and then bring up the prosthesis to the same step. While not a normal step over step ascent, this allowed the amputee to walk up steps almost as fast as able-bodied people.

Another point made by this amputee is that he found that first of all, the choice of a prosthetist can make a real difference in outcome. Also, he said that once he received his leg, it could take up to a year to get the socket just right. Being able to walk well and be comfortable can take a long time with many modifications. Persistence is key here.

This amputee also has the TEC system for a socket. He indicated that he liked it better than a previous suction socket mainly due to better comfort. He did indicate that he has a problem with sweating and the suction sockets could be periodically drained easier than the TEC system.

Sweating

Another email we received stated: I read that someone was having difficulties with severe AK sweating problems. Many years ago, I found two very helpful aids: (and I can't say for certain which is better)

1. A product called DRIONIC - a special application device - which when used as recommended - greatly reduced my AK sweating.

2. A headwork device. Personal care. Deodorant vs antiperspirant. Antiperspirant s are effective in reducing sweating at the applied areas - and, re- directing the moisture problems to other areas of the body - like the AK's stump. Try using deodorants instead.

3. AboveKneeAmputee.com can also recommend a product called Drysol that will help prevent sweating. 

A knee that works

Another email we received stated: I used another prosthetist for my first leg and was not satisfied with this person. I would ask questions and the reply I would get was basically, take what you have it's the best we can do and would not even bother to look anything up.

I found a another prosthetist and I started to ask her questions about other components I could use, she was happy to look them up for me, some we could use others we couldn't, but at least she found out!

I have also volunteered to help my prosthetist teach other PT students on many occasions which has been helpful to her and me as I was able to try on many "Parts" and now use the MAUCH SNsJr knee with the Flex VSP. Now I know what parts are the best for ME.

SLIP ON SHOES

I like to wear slip-on shoes but if they don't fit just right the heel can slip off on the prosthetic side - a real problem when walking!  To fix the problem you can stuff kleenex in the toes of the shoe.  It tightens the fit enough to keep the shoe from slipping