The final product looks really cool and has some new features. Reid has grown enough to have some padding below his stump and use a locking pin system (ie. there is enough room between the end of his stump and the prosthetic foot). His new prosthetic is internally suspended by a gel liner (creates a suction directly to his skin). This is great for Reid because
1. he hated the suspension sleeve (it gave him rashes on his thigh, limited knee bending, and was HOT)
2. he wasn't crazy about the suspension from his knee (it squeezed too much as he grew and limited range of motion)
3. this one can get wet without soaking up water and leading to friction and/or rashing (no cotton sock)
4. and the liner is infused with Aloe Vera so it will help to soothe his stump skin (he often has a bit of irritation).
Another small bonus is that he got another foot with a division between the big toe and the rest...he wants some summer flip-flops. :-) The first foot had this, but the last one didn't.I just overheard him say, "I think my new prosthetic isn't *just* rainbow stripes, I think it's *beautiful,* too!" and then I heard a little "me, too" from Grant. Awwwwwwwwwwww...
PS I tucked his shirt in for the picture because it's so big you couldn't tell he had on pants! He doesn't usually look so "formal" or "stiff" when playing! ;-)
3 comments:
That is such a sweet story! I think his leg is beautiful too. You did a great job finding the right fabric.
So, you like the gel liner better? Did he have a pelite liner before with the sock and the nylon?
I'll have to ask our prosthetist about this. He told me before that there isn't enough room between the end of her leg and the ground for a pin locking system. Did Reid have a symes or a boyd?
thanks for the info! And, as if you didn't know your son is lovely :)
Niki
Hi, Niki!
OK, I know this is horrible, but I'm not sure what the name of the liner was before...it was a thin foam that was kinda skin colored and he wore a sock underneath and a nylon between the liner and the socket to decrease the suction of pulling the liner out. Does that sound like pelite? Does my description even make sense? It's late. :-)
The main reason we like this better is that he doesn't need a sleeve to hold it on (he always rashed with the sleeve...maybe the heat here in TX?) and it's not squeezing/suspended from his knee (not comfortable for him day one, much more uncomfortable as he grew).
Reid is trans-tibial and needs a thick cushion at the tip (can't weight-bear) so fitting the 1 1/2" pin and locking mechanism under that meant that his other leg really needed to grow before he had room for this.
We really love it, but have heard from other amputees that Reid is young (5.5yo) for the locking pin...they seem surprised, but I'm not sure why.
I hope that helps! I loved the update on Madeleine's leg...her first was adorable! We got out Reid's two old ones and looked at how much he's grown by comparing his legs. :-)
Also, the locking pin system works great around water, but I've heard that getting sand down inside can jam the pin system and then the leg won't come off.
(The solution given by our prosthetist in case of this emergency was to use the hose to put a lot of water between Reid and the liner to help him slip on out, but that only solves the leg being locked ON, not the leg being locked in general! I assume you would then unscrew the liner and try to rise around the pin with water and an air compressor to get the sand out...also probably opening the button side to get at it all from another angle.)
Anyway, around water we haven't lost suction yet (slip'n'slide and pool) and when he's done we just remove the liner, dry both the stump and the inside of the liner and put it all back on. We like it better than socks since the liner can be worn again right away.
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