Assessment of Vacuum-assisted trans-tibial amputee socket dynamics

Daily volume loss of the residual limp is reported as one of the greatest challenges in socket fitting. Assisted vacuum socket systems were developed to prevent stump's volume loss and maintain sufficient socket fit. There is however very little quantitative biomechanical research for the evaluation of below knee sockets with assisted vacuum systems. Highly accurate in-vivo measurements became recently available using high-speed, high resolution biplane dynamic rontgen stereogrammetric analysis (DRSA) instrumentation. This study presents the first effort to evaluate the efficiency of the vacuum assisted liner socket using DRSA. This in-vivo patient specific information is highly accurate and can significantly influence the iterative cycle of trans-tibial socket fitting and evaluation.