Modular prosthetic design for transtibial child amputees

Lower limb deficiencies and below knee amputations are the most common form of deficiency that may arise from disease or trauma, and returning a patient close to a normal quality-of-life requires prosthetics, which can be quite challenging. Children present even further difficulty to prosthetists and physicians than adults. Although the underlying prosthetic principles for adults are the same for children, additional considerations must be made for practicality, such as downsizing while maintaining its degree of complexity, and frequent appointments to account for the rapid growth of an adolescent. This review article will evaluate the current state-of-the-art in the field of transtibial-amputee prosthetics, review the insurance coverage a typical family would face, and suggest potential improvements to children's biomimetic prostheses that aid in reducing the frequency of health care provider intervention.