Approximately 41,000 Americans across all demographics and etiologies live with upper-limb amputations that are psychologically and functionally devastating.1-2 Inadequate insurance, rural location, limited rehabilitation services, and long, arduous prosthetic fittings remain barriers to comprehensive treatment.3-5
While innovative surgical management, with focus on techniques for neuropathic pain mitigation and myoelectric prosthesis optimization, has been well described, upper-limb surgeons are hesitant to treat patients with limb loss due to the lack of a comprehensive model for their care. Environmental and psychological factors are often tantamount to surgical challenges, necessitating a holistic approach.2,10,11 This article provides a roadmap for creating a successful clinic based on experience at the Amputation Rehabilitation Medicine and Surgery (ARMS) Clinic, New Jersey, dedicated to patients with upper-limb loss, with hopes of expanding access for patients with complex, yet often surmountable obstacles to recovery. Our purpose is to encourage recognition and promote discourse on the benefits of the multidisciplinary approach, and to ensure providers, employers, patients, and hospital systems have a better understanding of the optimal treatment of these conditions.
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