Date of Award

2018

Document Type

Scholarly Project

Degree Name

Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT)

Department

Physical Therapy

First Advisor

Cindy Flom-Meland

Keywords

Artificial Limbs; Gait -- physiology; Prosthesis Design; Range of Motion, Articular

Abstract

Background and Purpose: The introduction of the High-Fidelity (HiFi) interface was developed to help increase the intimacy of the prosthetic interface by using a series of alternating zones of tissue compression and release. The purpose of this study was to utilize motion analysis to measure the stability of the femur in individuals with trans-femoral amputation that utilize the HiFi socket for ambulation.

Methods: The subject was a 62 year old Caucasian female. She had a trans-femoral amputation 35 years prior due to a diagnosis of cancer located in the bone of her femur. Data collection was done with the Vicon motion analysis system. The Vicon system utilizes reflective anatomical markers, which were placed at the junction of the HiFi Prosthetic Socket and at other significant anatomical landmarks, to allow the Vicon system to track and quantify the motion of these markers. Nine walking trials were completed utilizing each of the three pressure conditions, low tightness, medium tightness, high tightness, for a total of twenty eight walking trials for the participant.

Results: Data was gathered through analysis of the peaks and valleys representing movement collected by the Vicon system, and trigonometry was used to interpret the results and movement in a three-dimensional space. The results demonstrated that increasing HiFi socket tightness, increases femur stability, and decreases movement of the femur on the prosthetic for this subject.

Discussion/Conclusion: The results of this study suggest that increased stability and tightness of the socket around the femur are advantages provided by the HiFi socket to improve gait mechanics and requires less compensation than a looser fitted socket, but further research is needed.

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