A few years ago, Phil Stevens, MEd, CPO, FAAOP, a clinician with Hanger Clinic, Salt Lake City, Utah, was confused by a patient’s prosthetic preference. The patient, a 46-year-old woman, had bilateral transfemoral amputations and a right transhumeral amputation. Through the years, she had worked hard and could ambulate “reasonably well” with both stubby and Ottobock C-Leg prostheses and had a system designed so her sockets could attach to either option, he says. “She could effectively make the choice every day, ‘What do I want to use today?'” Stevens says. Using the C-Legs, she was taller, could walk faster, and could negotiate both uneven terrain and inclines. Yet more often than not, she chose the stubby prostheses and had a hard time explaining her choice. “So the question became ‘why?'” Stevens says.
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