Current and Emerging Trends in the Management of Fall Risk in People with Lower Limb Amputation
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PHYSICAL THERAPY AND REHABILITATION (O ADDISON, SECTION EDITOR)
Current and Emerging Trends in the Management of Fall Risk in People with Lower Limb Amputation Sheila Clemens 1,2
&
Charissa Doerger 3 & Szu-Ping Lee 4
# Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2020
Abstract Purpose of Review People living with lower limb amputation are at an increased risk of falling compared with the healthy geriatric population. Factors of increased age and increased number of comorbidities could compound the already increased risk. The purpose of this article is to highlight recent research associated with fall risk in amputees and provide the reader with evidence to help guide clinical interventions. Recent Findings Though research on the topic of falls in people with amputation is becoming more common, there is still a dearth of evidence regarding what contributes to increased fall risk and how to address it in this population. There are recent studies that have examined therapy and prosthetic interventions that could mitigate fall risk in people with amputation, yet there is not enough evidence to develop a consensus on the topic. More research is required to determine what contributes to increased fall rates in people with amputation, and what detriments to an amputee’s function or psyche may result after incurring a fall. Summary Borrowing from what is known about geriatric fall risk and combining the information with novel and existing approaches to fall mitigation in amputees can offer clinicians the opportunity to develop evidence-based programs to address fall risk in their patients with lower limb amputation. Keywords Amputation . Fall risk . Prosthetics . Limb loss
Introduction This article is part of the Topical Collection on Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation * Sheila Clemens [email protected] Charissa Doerger [email protected] Szu-Ping Lee [email protected] 1
Department of Physical Therapy, Nicole Wertheim College of Nursing and Health Sciences, Florida International University, 11200 S.W. 8th St., Miami, FL 33199, USA
2
Research Health Scientist, Bruce W. Carter Veterans Affairs Healthcare System, 1201 N.W. 16th St., Miami, FL 33125, USA
3
Division of Physical Therapy, School of Kinesiology and Physical Therapy, University of Central Florida, 12805 Pegasus Dr., Orlando, FL 32816, USA
4
Department of Physical Therapy, School of Integrated Health Sciences, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, 4505 S. Maryland Pkwy, Box 453029, Las Vegas, NV 89154, USA
There are over one million people living with lower limb amputation (LLA) in the USA [1] and this number has been increasing, to an ever-younger and wider population, due to the rates of chronic diseases like diabetes and peripheral vascular disease [2]. As a result of gait and balance adaptations from losing a portion of their lower limb, amputees have a higher fall risk than the general geriatric population and other patient groups during all phases of recovery [3, 4]. Unfortunately, falls in people with LLA are a complicated
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