A Single Word Can Change Everything

Can't has been a very good word for the O&P profession. Rather than setting the stage for restriction and limitation, can't is setting a brand new stage - one in which the impossible is being challenged head on. Unwilling to be defined by what current upper-extremity prosthetics can't do, the Defense Advanced Projects Research Agency (DARPA) is pushing the envelope of what they can do by funding research to develop an advanced mechanical platform for an upper-extremity prosthesis in two years and a neurally controlled upper-extremity prosthesis in four years. "We are the impossible guys," says Col. Geoffrey Ling, MD, PhD, manager of DARPA's Revolutionizing Prosthetics program. Judith Philipps Otto talked with Col. Ling and brings you the story behind some of the amazing advancements in upper-extremity prosthetics. Reporting on the most current progress of one DARPA-funded project, Mary Rose Roberts talked with researchers at Johns Hopkins University (JHU) shortly after they unveiled Proto 2, an upper-limb prosthesis that has shown seven degrees of freedom and promises 27 degrees of freedom. Plans for the prototype arm include commercial availability. There are also a number of advancements in foot-ankle systems coming down the pike, and we preview two of them in this issue - one being developed by researchers at MIT and another in development at Martin Bionics in partnership with College Park Industries. Both are bringing foot-ankle systems closer to true biologic function. Turning can't on its head isn't limited solely to prosthetic research and development. Overcoming can't helped Ben Quinn resume the active lifestyle he enjoyed before a tragic skydiving accident resulted in the amputation of his left leg below the knee. In this month's "Today's Consumer," Quinn tells Sherry Metzger how he was bolstered by his prosthetist, Tom Broselle, CPO, who never said " can't " when Quinn wanted to try something new but instead said, "Let's see what we can do so that you'll be able to do that." What seems impossible is largely defined by what we know to be possible today. In terms of possibility, it has been a banner year for O&P. For every can't being uttered out there today, there seems to be a researcher, an entrepreneur, or other evangelist out there saying, "Oh, yeah?" I can't wait to see what happens next year. I'd also like to welcome a new columnist to The O&P EDGE . Kristin Carnahan, a second-year student in the master of science in prosthetics and orthotics (MSPO) program at the Georgia Institute of Technology, will be telling us her story as she completes her master's degree in "Education Update."

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Certified Prosthetist / Prosthetist-Orthotist (CP/CPO) Gates Prosthetics + Mobility Clinic — Mountain Home, AR

Clinic Manager – Certified Prosthetist Orthotist (CPO) – Rogers, AR

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Related posts:

iPed: One Step Closer to Human Function

Facility Accreditation: The Time Is Now

Wounded Warrior Center Opens

O&P JOBS

Certified Prosthetist / Prosthetist-Orthotist (CP/CPO) Gates Prosthetics + Mobility Clinic — Mountain Home, AR

Clinic Manager – Certified Prosthetist Orthotist (CPO) – Rogers, AR

CPO

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EDGE DIRECT

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