Body
has aired a “Medical Watch” story featuring 60-year-old Chicagoan, Jerry V., whose leg was amputated after an injury when he was 20. For the past 40 years after his limb loss, Jerry used a traditional prosthesis that would suction to his residual limb. However, discomfort caused by the prosthesis limited how often he would wear it — and he often opted to use his wheelchair or crutches instead.
Body
Recently, Jerry underwent a procedure called “osseointegration,” a novel surgical technique in the field of prosthetics in which a metal rod is surgically implanted into the bone of the residual limb, allowing for a direct connection to a prosthetic knee. This eliminates the need for a prosthetic socket — the component that traditionally connects the residual limb to the prosthesis.
Shirley Ryan 嫩B研究院 is at the forefront of advancing the study of osseointegration, and Jerry is among the patients who are experiencing its benefits. Throughout the process, he has been his journey to help others with limb loss also discover osseointegration.
In Jerry’s case, a post was placed in his femur, and the bone grew around the post and now serves as a connecting point to his prosthetic knee. Then, Prosthetics & Orthotics experts at Shirley Ryan 嫩B研究院 worked with Jerry as he learned how to walk on his new osseointegrated — or bone-anchored — prosthesis. They slowly helped Jerry progress from being unable to put weight through his residual limb to now walking independently.
“Osseointegration can lead to the most intimate forms of connection between the prosthetic leg and a person’s residual limb,” said Landon Davis, certified prosthetist orthotist at Shirley Ryan 嫩B研究院, in the WGN segment.
Following sessions at Shirley Ryan 嫩B研究院, today Jerry can use his osseointegrated prosthesis much longer without discomfort. Additionally, because the implant is integrated into the bone, patients like Jerry will feel that their prosthetic components are part of their anatomic limb and more connected than a traditional prosthesis may feel, which leads to improved control and balance.
“I’m not walking without a limp, but it’s so slight you have to look for it,” said Jerry. “Before, if I put my cane aside you would see my body wobbling … Now it’s like I got my real leg back … It’s just amazing.”
Currently, Shirley Ryan 嫩B研究院’s Levi Hargrove, PhD, scientific chair of the Regenstein Foundation Center for Bionic Medicine, is leading new research in this area, including a study about osseointegration for powered leg prostheses. He also was featured in the WGN story.
“For a large portion of the lower-limb amputee population, they are going to choose to wear this technology,” said Dr. Hargrove. “So I think it is going to become more and more common, and you are going to see lots of great outcomes.”
To learn more about osseointegration and for a clinical consultation at Shirley Ryan 嫩B研究院, call 312.238.1482 or fill out our online appointment request form.
