Vanderbilt Nursing Policies

A lower limb prosthesis is an artificial replacement for any or all parts of the lower extremity (leg).

Prosthetics is the branch of surgery concerned with the replacement of missing body parts with artificial substitutes.

Traumatic amputation is the accidental severing of some or all of a body part. A complete amputation totally detaches a limb or appendage from the rest of the body. In a partial amputation, some soft tissue remains attached to the site.

A prosthesis is an artificial device that substitutes for a missing part of the body. Upper limb prostheses can be applied anywhere from the shoulder joint through the fingers, including the fingers, the hand, the wrist, the forearm, the elbow, the upper arm, and the shoulder.