The Importance of Weight Maintenance with Your Prosthetic Socket

The absence of a limb and a portion of the muscular-skeletal system can cause physical strain on the rest of the body, not to mention the emotional strain of adapting to limb loss. Both your initial recovery and long-term wellness will benefit from committing to a healthy lifestyle.

During rehabilitation and beyond, it’s important to eat as healthily as possible and to remain active to keep your weight stable. Maintaining a consistent, healthy weight is important for everybody. But for those who have lost a limb, it’s even more important for the following reasons:

• To reduce the energy required to use your prosthesis
• To prevent or reduce secondary conditions, such as back pain
• To control diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure
• To improve your mood and mental health

Most importantly, weight maintenance will help ensure a proper fit of the prosthetic socket attached to your residual limb.

Gaining weight can make the socket tight and uncomfortable; losing weight can cause it to be loose and more difficult to control. In either case, it’s sometimes necessary to fabricate a new socket to accommodate the changing dimensions of the residual limb.

Getting used to a new prosthesis is a physical and psychological challenge involving a partnership between the patient and their prosthetist. Connect with Allen Orthopedic Labs. We’ll work with you through every stage of the process, from choosing the best prosthesis for your needs to helping you learn how to operate your new limb and tackle new challenges.