Support Community for Amputees

This is the prosthetic finger system from Point Designs. I haven't seen that one before. Unlike Naked Prosthetics' fingers, Point Designs' seem to address mainly the need of people with MCP joint-level or ray amputations of the hand. So kind of the same demographic as Ian Davis's fabulous prosthetic hand system, but much less complex.

They use a simple ratcheting mechanism that's designed to be washable, almost maintenance-free and able to withstand 150 lbs of pulling force:

Point Designs supplies an "impression kit" - basically a pot of quick-cure 2-part latex - to take a print of your residual hand and send it to them for fabrication of the socket. So presumably, if you have a handy friend to help your out, you don't need to visit a prosthesist and you can do it at home, potentially saving you money:

Finally, Point Designs offers free fingertip pads for the lifetime of the prosthesis and a 24-month warranty that covers manufacturing defects.

Not too surprisingly, I was unable to find any pricing information.

More worryingly, I was also unable to find any independent review or material apart from the company's own or their distributors'. So ultimately, I have no idea what those fingers are worth.

But they seem really cool so I figured I'd share.

Hey. I was kicked out of my parents house. Long story but you can ask me for details in a reply or message me. Anyways I was wondering what strategies I should use in order to survive this saga. My left arm has been amputated and I've managed to get a job interview at mcdonalds only for them to come around the issue and ask if I'm still capable of performing the work. Legal or not they didn't hire me. I'm tempted to beg for money, dumpster dive or enter s3x work at this point. I'm just getting desperate and hungry. All advice appreciated thanks. Located in Canada

Also this video:

https://youtu.be/vb62KIEAlqc

I went for that exam men of a certain age have to endure. The doc told me to bend over. I told him I'd rather do this lying on my side because I'm don't feel very stable in that position. He asked why, then looked down and proceeded to take a closer look, going "Ooh right! What happened there then!?"

And there I was with my pants down, being gawked at by a nosy urologist and having to explain myself. I don't know, it really made me feel miserable.

Ian Davis has spent 5 years designing his very impressive and totally cool body-powered hand prosthesis, and has turned it into a kit that can be manufactured for a reasonable cost for people with a similar amputation.

He's looking for candidates to try out his kits. If you'd like one and you think you fit the requirements, he has a few slots left.

This is 7 years old, but what a fabulous project!

Interesting account of what happens before amputation in the case of frostbite, why surgeons wait as long as possible to amputate and how they try to salvage as much limb as possible.

I finally have an appointment to get my problematic residual phalanges taken care of. The hospital created an account for me into their fancy-shmancy "My Recovery Path" online system, in which they told me I'd find messages about my care, imaging results, appointments and the likes.

So I logged in to check it out, and I found my first automated message in the inbox - a 5-page PDF that went something like this:

Welcome to your My Recovery Path account!

You've been referred to the Foot & Ankle team for RESIDUAL TOES REVISION. Before your first appointment for RESIDUAL TOES REVISION, here are helpful documents to help you deal with common toe problems.

• Best footwear for bunions
• Avoiding blisters on hammertoes
• How to care for diabetic toes
• Trimming ingrown toenails safely
• Reducing hallux rigidus pain
• ...

Like... Really?

Clearly the word "toe" in my referral triggered the sending of this boilerplate.

I realize whoever programmed this system means well, and the hospital means well too. And I can see this system is convenient as a one-stop shop to get information about my problem and communicate with the doctors. But the automatic "helpful" advice is a bit depressing...

Exoneo makes 2 prosthetic feet: the Mahi for moderate to high activity levels and the Upya for low activity.

Both have a spring block under the heel and spring-loaded "metatarsals", which helps push-off when walking:

https://youtu.be/YeZNaM0NaNc

You can even assemble and size them yourself:

https://youtu.be/XjdDyo69JJU

More interestingly, it seems the company has a lot of customers in developing countries, meaning there's a very good chance those feet are affordable. Sadly, I couldn't find prices and I didn't want to request a quote for nothing.

I did find an independent review of the Upya foot (in French here, automagic translation here, accompanying video here), so at least it's not like all the information I could find comes solely from the manufacturer.

The reviewer confirms that the foot was competitively priced: although he doesn't disclose how much he paid for his foot, he does say it's "a prowess considering the price at which it's sold". That bodes well.

It's that time of the year again.

It happens to me once or twice a year: all ten toes itch like a mofo. It comes at random, but usually around fall and spring. It might have something to do with large temperature changes, but no matter what I wear, I still haven't found out how to prevent it happening.

I've tried a massage, hot mud pads, cold gel pads, icy-hot balm, going to the sauna, painkillers (the non-addictive kind), and I'm nearing the bottom of this small bottle of bourbon because it's driving me insane.

If anybody has any suggestion, I'm all ears.

What a fabulous passive articulated foot!

It's very light - about half the weight of a real foot - and it looks easy and cheap to manufacture, so that everyone could afford one. In fact, it looks simple enough that most parts could be 3D-printed.

More information here: Introducing SoftFoot Pro: a cutting-edge motorless, flexible and waterproof artificial foot

From the Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia in Genoa in collaboration with the Centro E. Piaggio of the University of Pisa.

Before I go see another doctor about this...

One of my residual phalanges has developed a small bone spur over the years, and another is too long - always has been - and hurts my skin from the inside.

I need to have the bone spur taken care of at some point, and I'd like to have the other residual phalange trimmed a quarter inch or so.

One doctor I saw about this a couple of years ago proposed full surgery, complete with general anaesthesia and more stitches than I really want, and I declined at the time because it seemed like a lot for so little.

My neighbor - who has all his limbs but is at the age when this sort of thing happens - had a bone spur on his heel taken care of, and he told me it was a simple, half-hour, local anaesthesia keyhole surgery with just one stitch and a week of easy recovery.

Does anybody know if that's also an option for small residual extremities bones and whether I should shop around to find a more competent surgeon?