Different body, same mind: The collaboration of prosthetic design, fitting and training to maximize athletic performance.

Abstract

People who have the potential for high-level activities, want to return to the sports and recreational activities they pursued prior to their loss of limb. Although they may have a different body, they have the same mind for sport, general fitness and the same desire to remain healthy by to including regular exercise into their daily lives or just being able to play with their children and friends. Recent innovations in prosthetic materials and designs have enable more people than ever to participate in more diverse sports and recreational activities.

This three-part comprehensive presentation will offer:

1) An update on manufacturer’s prosthetic materials and design criteria and how they are impacting sports.

2) A discussion on socket/suspension designs, sport specific prosthetic alignment and various fabrication techniques to facilitate the return to sports for more people.

3) Finally, this presentation will introduce a series of novel training exercises designed to safely maximize athletic performance with a prosthesis. Moreover, selected outcome measures will be introduced to quantify the amputee athlete’s improvement while training to reach their goals. Each speaker will include the most recent scientific evidence. Differences between novice and elite athletes will be described with an emphasis on how an athlete might progress with component selection, prosthetic modifications and training progressions. To facilitate an interactive audience discussion, case studies of known athletes will be presented to provide real-life examples how the information presented may be applied in clinical practice.

Statement of the objective / learning objectives

Participants will be able to: 1) describe the appropriate prosthetic components for specific sports, 2) discuss prosthetic fit and alignment concerns for amputee athletes, and 3) identify training exercises for the enhancement of prosthetic performance.

This session is supported by Össur.