Pages 188—198 Biomechanical assessment of below-knee residual limb tissue

ABSTRACT—In vivo indentation properties of the resid-ual limb tissues of a group of senior subjects with below-knee (BK) amputation were measured and com-pared with those of nondisabled young adults. It was found that differences attributable to site variations, states of muscular activity, and the differences between the nondisabled young group and the group consisting of the seniors with amputation were all noted to be highly significant statistically. However, paired comparison be-tween the residual limb and the sound contralateral limb of the senior group showed no significant difference. Residual limb properties measured right before the first prosthetic measurements and fittings and those measured at the first outpatient follow-up were found to be slightly different. Key words: below-knee residual limb, biomaterials, biomechanics, indentation, prosthetic socket desig