In a recent study, researchers assessed the impact of using a microprocessor-controlled prosthetic knee (MPK) compared with a non-microprocessor-controlled prosthetic knee (NMPK) through feedback from transfemoral prosthesis users. The study concluded that utility, natural gait, and ambulation improved when using MPK compared to an NMPK during prosthetic rehabilitation.
The cross-sectional study included 76 adults with unilateral transfemoral amputations who were classified into two groups of 38. Participants in the first group used the Ottobock Genium MPK, and the second group used NMPK hydraulic and total knee joints. Enrollment was based on a sequence of appointments where all participants answered the Prosthetic Evaluation Questionnaire (PEQ) with subscale questions for utility, sounds, appearance, residual limb health, frustration, perceived response, social burden, ambulation, and quality of life. The PEQ was filled out during the follow-up appointments at the prosthetic clinic through a visual analog scale.
The results indicated that MPK participants had significantly improved utility, appearance, ambulation, and total PEQ score, the same results as the male participants. Middle-adulthood (25-40 years) MPK participants had a significant p-value in the score of utility, frustration, ambulation, and total PEQ score compared to early-adulthood (18-24 years) and late-adulthood (41-60 years) participants. There was a significant improvement in the p-value in ambulation scores in participants using the MPK with amputations caused by diseases compared to amputations caused by trauma and congenital cause.
“This comparison will help us highlight the importance of use, make prescribing criteria… easier, and assist to match patient expectations in the assessment phase,” the authors wrote.
The open-access study, “Impacts of Microprocessor-Controlled Versus Non-microprocessor-Controlled Prosthetic Knee Joints Among Transfemoral Amputees on Functional Outcomes: A Comparative Study,” was published in Cureus.
