Prosthetic Limb Research Paper Essay

prosthetic offshoots all started with a genuinely simple problem. Do you just submit for up hope when you lose an arm or a tholepin, or is there several(prenominal) other right smart to make the best of a situation? Hope was non given up by us persistent human beings and that is how dummy tree branchs were thought of. Instead trying to earn around, we thought of drippy legs to tending those who move over lost them. Instead of just having sensation arm, we thought of man-made arms to be able to prepargon two again.Prosthesis not only brought hope to those who were seriously injure and lost their branchs, but it helped these commonwealth bring their lives back to as mean(prenominal) as it could be. Of course prosthetic device did not start off as being perfect and superior school tech, but they s humbledly progressed throughout thousands of historic intent to the engineering we have today, as well as the ideas we have for the future. synthetic limbs date b ack all the expressive style to the magazines of the old-fashioned Egyptians. These were very staple prosthetics and were do from the materials they had readily gettable such as woodland, weightlift or lather. Alan J.Thurston discusses the early Egyptian prosthetic, One of the earliest examples comes from the 18th dynasty of antediluvian Egypt in the reign of Amenhotep II in the fifteenth century BC when members of an EgyptianGerman mission working in the Sheikh Abdel-Gurna plain stitch of operations of the Theban necropolis were c befully brushing away accumulated shite from the burial shaft inside the rockhewn tomb of Mery, a priest of Amun. The mom that is on display in the Cairo Museum has clearly had the great toe of the right foot am raiseated and replaced with a prosthesis manufactured from leather and wood (Fig. 1).An even older example comes from the fifth Egyptian dynasty (27502625 BC) discovered by archaeologists, as being the earliest kn take in splint from that period (Thurston 1114). The ancient Egyptians and other early cultures to use prosthetics did so not only for the strong-arm need for them, but to have a feeling of being livelong and complete. Many cultures feared amputation over death because they wouldnt be whole in the afterlife. So if a person had to have an amputation and had a prosthetic put in place, they would save their old limb and be buried with it so they would have their whole body in the afterlife with them.The first scripted record of artificial limbs was from around 3500 BC. It was a poem written by Rig-Veda and was almost a queen who lost her leg in fighting and had an iron prosthesis put in place to where her leg was suppositional to be so she could return to battle. The next recorded records of prosthetics that were actually do for rehabilitation came from the ancient Roman and Greek civilizations. The books by the Greek historian Herodotus of Halicarnassus, report a prosthetic replacement. Herodotus s tates that in 484 BC, a Persian spend escaped imprisonment by cutting off his leg therefore replacing it with a wooden prosthesis.The report states that he was able to transit 30 miles to Tregea. He was unfortunately captured by Zaccynthius and was promptly decapitated. This has been vali go out with the conclusion of a copper and wood leg in Capri, Italy, in 1858, which has been dated to 300 BC (Fig. 2). 5 Lower-limb prostheses of the time were typically make of tan plates with a wooden core and leather straps (1114). As seen here, this was the first shade to actually have a limb that served a function to help the man passing game. The concept of an artificial limb had slightly progressed and become a better tool.The next stage of prostheses came from around 450-1000 A. D. These are the typical branch legs that people think of and are typically thought of as what pirates identical Captain Hook had. Peg legs made of again wood, leather or metal were utilize to help people walk. Hook hands were withal made to replace people who lost a hand. This style of prosthesis that is basically a modified crutch with a wooden or leather cup persisted into the early part of the twentieth century (Fig. 3). The use of these basic materials persisted until relatively recent times and many an(prenominal) examples have survived. (1114).So for many years people were content with this simple compositors case of prosthetic limb and it wasnt for about 500 years until it began to progress into something better. The next gesture of prosthesis came from Ambroise discase, a Frenchman born in 1510. He was a surgeon for the French Army and was prominently known for his treatment to gunshot wounds. He withal made great progress in artificial limbs. His Le Petit Lorrain, a mechanical hand operated by catches and springs was worn by a French Army captain in battle. He also devised an above- stifle prosthesis consisting of a articulatio genusling peg and a prosthetic foot.I t had a firm equinus position, a locking knee joint and a breaking harness, features that are notwithstanding in use today (1117). This hand was the starting point for the innovational prostheses in existence today as well as the leg he genuine. It was the first successful leg to have the locking knee, intermission harness and the equinus position and it set the bar for other prosthetics to come. as well Pare was the first to make a prosthesis with joints The leg he intentional for amputation through the thigh is the first known to employ articulated joints (Wilson junior 2).The next wave of progression with artificial limbs came from the Civil War, and with anesthetics bear witness, the surgeries were improved terriblely. Also the United States government paid for prosthesis for war veterans so they became more than common. There was unfortunately not much advancement in prosthesis during this time period Many patents on artificial limbs were issued between the time o f the Civil War and the turn of the century, but few of the designs seem to have had much lasting impact(6). World War I also didnt create much advancement in artificial limbs because of low casualties and the depression. afterward World War II , prosthetic research developed the beginnings of the prostheses in widespread use today (Spaeth vii), in what was called the Artificial arm Program. They even further developed artificial limbs by making things such as the patellar-tendon-bearing (PTB) below-knee prosthesis, the quadrilateral socket and accompanying method of alignment, the Henschke-Mauch hydraulic knee unit, a totally naked as a jaybird armamentarium for management of upper limb amputees, and the amputee clinic team of concept. Of tremendous signifi freighterce was the emphasis on early fitting and saving the knee when amputation was necessary due to arteriosclerosis(6).All of these progressions were very important in changing prosthetics from a simple peg leg to the types of artificial limbs present today. If it werent for these, we wouldnt be nearly as advanced in the field or prosthetics and would be far behind. From here many organizations were made in order to support amputees. Also because the profession of being a prosthetist was only taught by experienced prosthetists and there was no other way of learning available, the University of California started offering classes in around the 1950s.With classes now available about artificial limbs, this also encouraged a take-off in the field and brought great awareness to the public. From here classes began to expand to universities such as vernal York University and at Northwestern University Medical School in Chicago(8). After these schools began teaching, many colleges and universities began to follow and the field began to expand. The next milestone for artificial limbs came in 1965 when the Medicare bill passed. This bill gave people over the age of 65 poor to no cost to receive an artificial limb.So because of this, the need for prosthetics increase and more and more studies were made on them. This leads us all the way to the prosthetics available today in 2012. The next progression of artificial limbs came from about 1945-1970 with the idea of bionic arms, or artificial limbs tone downled by electricity. It would use myoelectric control to power the limbs The concept of a myoelectric prosthesis is simple. The electrical activity of course generated by contracting muscle in a residual limb is amplified, processed and used to control the low of electricity from a onslaught to a motor, which operates an artificial limb (Muzumdar 1).It was the Germans who first claimed to be able to grasp this feat, but it would be exceedingly difficult to make the limb cheek and feel normal. Reinhold Reiter was the first one to implement myoelectric control in 1945. His mental image however was not realistic because it was not portable. His prototype was essentially never going to work, but his beginnings of research on myoelectric control started a new wave in artificial limbs. This then sparked a worldwide invite to successfully control myoelectric electricity.Major countries began to compete and try to progress to successfully make a myoelectrically controlled prosthetic. The United States became close to having a successful and economical one, but logistics problems caused the procedure to be unsuccessful. Then in the turn to the 60s a Russian scientist named A. Y Kobrinski was able to create a self-contained myoelectric control system. This was one of the first stand-alone, battery-powered systems to be used on a number of amputees (56).Between the 70s and the 80s many different types of the new artificial limbs were used on adults as well as children. They were very successful and many people benefited from them. During this period, myoelectric hands were the main myoelectric powered prostheses. Competition sprang between corporations during this time period and they looked to make artificial limbs lighter and more efficient. Then in the 90s, prosthetics began to be powered by computer technology During the 90s, the myoelectric prosthesis industry began to turn towards computer technology to provide programmable controls systems.These advanced controllers can be adjusted, bandage on the patient, to give a variety of functions from one or two electrode sites (57). This computer technology leads all the way to the types of artificial limbs present today. Battery technology has also increased tremendously during the retiring(a) years, which gives the prosthetics greatly improved battery life. Artificial limbs today are extremely efficient and the batteries last a long time. Also the computer technology available creates greater memory for movement and control, which allows the prosthetics to feel more natural.The artificial limbs today vary greatly depending on the need of the patient. There are cosmetic prosthetic limbs, also c alled a cosmesis. These are the prosthetics that look just like real limbs. innovative plastics and pigments uniquely matched to the patients own bark tone allow a modern day cosmesis to take on an amazingly life-like appearance. Even details such as freckles, hair and fingerprints can be included, bringing the cosmesis to the point where its nearly very(a) from the original missing arm or leg (Clements 5).There are also the basic artificial limbs which just serve the purpose to walk and arent as natural looking. An example of this could be the prosthetics you see the ball carrier in the Olympics wearing. Regardless, the essential components of prosthetics are generally the same. They are composed of the plyon, which is the skeletal frame for the limb and the main support. Today these are generally made of lightweight but strong metals such as carbon persona components. Next there is the socket, which connects the artificial limb to the stub where the patients limb used to be .It is very important the socket is built correctly or it can cause further damage to the patient Because the socket transmits forces from the prosthetic limb to the patients body, it must be meticulously fitted to the residual limb to ensure that it doesnt cause irritation or damage to the skin or underlying tissues (3). The next and final essential component is the suspension system. This is the part that makes the artificial limb stay connected to the body and not fall off. This is generally done by a suction system, which uses an gas-tight seal to prevent the limb from falling off when its pushed on.prosthetic limbs today are all unique in their own way. The type of amputation and where the limb is cut off all has a great launch on the type of prosthetic limb needed. A below the knee prosthetic for example is far different from an above the knee. The above the knee prosthetic will need an articulated knee and takes much more technology to make. It also needs to attach to differ ent nervousness as well as many other factors. One problem with these high tech limbs however is their price. Prosthetic limbs are extremely expensive, and the more high tech they are, the more expensive they become.There are even some prosthetic limbs today that use microprocessors and can remember your body movements Advanced prosthetic legs can be equipped with a microprocessor (computer chip) and sensors that measure angles and forces while a patient walks. Over time, the microprocessor learns how the patient walks and constantly adapts the stiffness of the knee accordingly (5). This is an example of the type of limb that would cost a patient tens of thousands of dollars. One of the really cool and amazing prosthetics technology today has brought us to is the targeted muscle reinnervation or TMR.It was developed by Dr. Todd Kuiken and it has to do with controlling artificial limbs with your brain. When a person loses a limb, he created the idea to attach the nerves from that li mb to a muscle close by that contributes to moving the actor limb. When this is done and the patient goes to try to move the used to be limb it then is able to send electrical currents, which causes Kuikens prosthetic limbs to move. This breakthrough he made is fascinating and extraordinary and opens doors to artificial limbs of the future.