ABU DHABI // Patients with diabetes who have had limbs amputated due to the disease are receiving top-level treatment at a new centre in Abu Dhabi. The centre manufactures custom-made artificial limbs and braces for people of all ages from all over the country. It provides assessment and fitting before making the limbs, and follows up to ensure patients are coping well. The Prosthetic and Orthotic service at the Abu Dhabi Rehabilitation Centre (ADRC) has treated more than 60 amputees, some of whom lost limbs as a result of diabetes, since opening in March.
Diabetes, which is very common in the UAE, can cause many complications, including neuropathy, a nerve disorder which can lead to amputation. According to www.diabetes.co.uk, a global community of people with diabetes, the condition is one the leading causes of amputation of the lower limbs. It is estimated that half of all amputations worldwide are carried out on diabetes sufferers. Staff at the centre, which is part of Sheikh Khalifa Medical City (SKMC), are also treating 150 patients who require braces or body supports due to muscoskeletal deformities.
"A large part of our role is to educate the patient about their prosthesis or orthosis in order for them to achieve full optimal function and life span," said Kirrily Brown, acting supervisor of the unit. "For patients who have undergone lower limb amputation, our prosthetist will assess, measure, manufacture and fit upper and lower limb prothesis. The life span of a prosthesis fitted after the residual limb matures is around three years."
The centre also deals with patients whose amputations are caused by vascular disease, trauma, congenital deficiencies and cancer, as well as cerebral palsy, spina bifida, and polio. Many of the items the unit uses such as shoe modifications and limb prosthesis are made on-site. They are custom-designed to match exactly the patient's needs. @email:munderwood@thenational.ae