Study of unilateral upper extremity amuputees in Okayama Prefecture

One hundred twelve unilateral upper extremity amputees who were registered at the Okayama Prefectural Rehabilitation Center were studied. There were 5 shoulder disarticulations, 28 upper arm amputations, one elbow disarticulation, 56 forearm amputations and 22 wrist disarticulations. Ninety-four percent of the cases were caused by trauma, such as labor accidents, traffic accidents and war injuries. The phantom limb was recognized in 59 percent. Seventeen percent complained of phantom at all times and showed psychological suppresive tendencies. Although phantom pain was reported in 24 percent, they had no trouble in daily activities. Ninety-five percent had a cosmetic prosthesis, of which 90 percent actually used it, i.e., 52 percent used the prosthesis not only for cosmetic reasons, but also in daily activities, and 38 percent used it for cosmetic reasons only. Fifty percent had a working arm (Arbeitsarm), and 95 percent of them actually used it. Ttey had 1.4 terminal devices on the average, and used the devices according to the kind of labor: such as ploughing, driving a tractor or carpentering. On the other hand, 12 percent had a functional prosthesis, but only 54 percent of them used it. Because there has been a lack of integrated rehabilitation for upper extremity amputees in Japan, functional prostheses have not been used widely. The answers to a questionaire about the upper extremity prosthesis indicated that 21 percent of the amputees should be enlightened as to the usefulness as well as the functional restriction of the upper extremity prosthesis. Moreover, it is necessary to improve the socket and the component.