After surgery

If your doctor approves, you should begin wrapping your residual limb with an ace bandage with a “figure eight” pattern. It is important not to wrap your residual limb too tightly above the end of the amputation because it will restrict circulation. The bandage should be removed and rewrapped several times each day, because it will become loose and fail to provide adequate support as the limb shrinks.

We do not recommend the use of a shrinker or reducer sock until the sutures are removed. Once the incision is healed, a shrinker sock is more convenient and helps further reduce the residual limb for prosthetic use. Even after you get your temporary prosthesis, you should use a shrinker when not wearing your artificial limb to keep swelling to a minimum. Some amputees continue to wear them throughout their lives, finding the support from a shrinker particularly comfortable at night.

Temporary/prepatory prosthesis

A prepatory prosthesis, also called a temporary prosthesis, always comes first. This is because the residual limb will continue to shrink in size for at least three months following surgery, maybe as long as 12 months. That means that the fit of the socket portion of the prosthesis will require several modifications.

A temporary prosthesis is less sophisticated than the definitive prosthesis and won’t look as attractive. But it saves time and money and leads to a better fitting definitive prosthesis. It also gives the patient the opportunity to be more active and to begin accepting the prosthesis as part of their body.

Regardless of how eager a patient may be to move on to their definitive prosthesis, if there is any uncertainty about the fit of the socket, the prepatory stage should continue.

Creating a prosthesis begins with the prosthetist casting the residual limb so a socket can be designed. During casting, a wet, plaster of paris bandage is molded around the residual limb, allowed to harden, and then removed. From this model, a clear diagnostic test socket is made that will allow the prosthetist to literally see the contour, fit and alignment of the socket.

Definitive prosthesis

 Once the residual limb has stabilized in size, you will be fitted for a definitive prosthesis. It’s important to understand that it will not last indefinitely. A prosthesis is fabricated from mechanical parts; these parts were out or sometimes break.