New prosthetic foot gives user a natural gait
By Evan Blass 
posted March 2nd 2006 8:00PM
posted March 2nd 2006 8:00PM
With 7% percent of the U.S. population
suffering from diabetes, and 82,000 non-traumatic lower limb amputations of diabetics in 2002 alone, the need for
natural-looking and -feeling prostheses has never been higher. One of the trickiest prosthetic devices to design, in
terms of correlation to an actual human body part, has been the foot, which traditionally has relied on a three-axis
system that allows for movement on rough terrain but gives the wearer an unnatural gait. Well researchers at Stuttgart,
Germany's Fraunhofer Technology Development Group claim to have overcome this drawback with a prosthetic foot that
mimics the minute inward rolling of a real foot from heel-to-ball that occurs mostly unconsciously during each step we
take. Even more impressively, unlike the computerized C-Leg, the foot designed by Dr. Urs
Schneider and his team is completely mechanical and devoid of expensive electronics. Users who have tested the foot in
clinical trials report less pain in other body parts as a result of its corrective properties, and Dr. Schneider says
that "hardly anyone notices that the person is wearing an artificial limb."
i find this technology fasinating and although im new to the amputee world, i want to know all that i can about what would be best to look into for my next leg or foot. i am a below the knee amputee and even though my knee is not that good anymore im interested in advancments in the ankle of a prosthetic. if anyone knows anything that could or would be helpful please let me know, after my next surgery in a month or so im going to be fitted for my second leg. so im looking to find out as much as a can before then.
Hi i'm having a major problems with my ankle at the moment!
I've had 3 operations on it to date, the last one caused a new problem involving my nerves! so i had my fourth operation to sort that out.
Neither have been sorted and seem worse?
The constant pain is enough now i have nerve pain etc...
I;ve been thinking about amputation for about the last year now.
Please can someone advise me if this is a good idea?
I'm aware of physco symatic pain and pain from other joints cause of the New Limb.
Has anyone had to choose to have your foot amputaed and been really pleased with the result?
I'm worried if I make the wrong choice and end up worse off!
Thank you for your help.
I know of a foot that a company called Mica makes that people Swear by. There website looks a bit out of date but i know they make a foot that you cannot even tell you have it on unless you pull your pant leg up.
Pretty impressive and complex joint in there. I wonder when foot and even leg grafting will happen (As the arm graft worked recently).
I wonder how much each one costs.
reading articles like this is like a breathe of fresh air... thanks...
As an amputee, it looks like this is gear to below the knee amputees (like me). Having a reasonably natural gait isn't that big of a deal if you have your knee. If you don't have a knee, it is unlikely that a better foot will matter much (the mechanisms for the artificial knees are pretty complex).
It strikes me as a nice improvement, but I am not sure it is a quality of life breakthrough. In recent decades the feet are a lot better. Nice to see the work continues.
In terms of grafting feet on - - don't count on it any time soon. My leg was lost to trauma (a brush-whacker w/circular saw blade, the blade fractured and so did I), and they initially re-attached. I could have tried to save the limb, but for dramatically less mobility than I have today. Here is why you won't see grafting (soon). Unlike the hand, the foot is very far from your spinal column. In order to control the limb, the nerves, starting at the spine must grow down to the foot. They grow at a rate of about 1 mm per month (I think, it was 11 years ago). Thus it takes about 18 months for the nerves to grow - - with no guarantee that they will work at all, let alone well. That is a big hurdle. It would be even worse (I imagine) if you were on anti-rejection drugs.
What I would like to see is improvements in the socket techniques to hold the prosthesis on. There have been some work on osseointegration, which would allow us to attach our prosthetics directly to the bone. There are infection concerns though. That is the next bit of progress that I am personally waiting for.
Hi DaveH,
I read your comment RE the new fake foot.
I would really like to talk to you about how to choose between amputation and trying to salvage your foot?
I've taken about as much as i can take (pain).
This problem has taken over my life.
I'm Giving you my telephone number cause i need to speak to someone asap.
I'm in the uk and know it costs if your calling from another country?
Just drop me an email and i'll ring at any time you request.
Also if your not wanting to talk to someone you dont know etc... i understand.
Thank you for your time, i hope to hear from you soon.
Daragheverett@hotmail.com
07830 398 960
01293 875098
Kind Regards,
Daragh Everett
Its a good thing too considering how many of our troops in Iraq are coming back limbless. Sure you hear about the occasional American death in Iraq. (Assuming we ignore the others who are dieing on a daily basis.)
What you don't hear about are those wounds that cost a person their arm or leg. What you arent hearing is there are a **** load of them. This industry is about to boom in a big and very morbid way. Meanwhile my uncle is so far back on a waiting list at the VA hospital because of Iraq priorities that he might die of old age first. But who cares right? We are winning the war on.... finding nukes, Bin Ladden, oil or something....I forget what are we fighting for again?
It's great to see work like this being done to help normal people enjoy a life to the full.
I'm an electronics engineer but I always love seeing simple, but elegant mechanical solutions to position control problems like this. Great work guys!
As someone who's been an above-the-knee my whole life it's always great to see new (and less costly!) prosthetic advances. Most people hardly know a) how many amputees there are in the US and b) how expensive prosthetics are and how little insurance offers to pay for (my insurance covers up to $1,500 of certain prosthetics- my last leg cost about $10,000). So thank you for highlighting these break throughs not only in technology but in less costly ideas as well.
ANY ONE THAT THINKS LOPPING OFF YOUR LEG BECAUSE OF PAIN U CAN LIVE WITH PAIN BUT NOT YOUR FOOT,ANKLE ,AND ESPECIALLY YOUR KNEE PLEASE RETHINK YOUR SITUATION!!!!!!!
Hi there, i am a partner of an amputee who unfortunately went to work one day and had his leg ripped off in front of his own eyes due to negligence on the company's behalf. I have read all of your comments and we totally understand the costings involved in maintaining the prosthetic leg and boy is it expensive!. I live in Australia and i am wondering if anyone could please reccommend any companies that we could buy products straight off the internet?? I have tried to look at some websites but unless we are a member which involves ringing foreign companies, we can't even view their products or catalogues as to what may be available. As we are fairly new to this sort of thing, any help or information anyone has would be very appreciated.
Thanking you in anticipation - Sarah (Brisbane, Australia)