March 2006 • Vol. 2, No. 1
	Advancing Orthotic and Prosthetic Care Through Knowledge

Book Review

Powered Upper Limb Prostheses

Editor: Ashok Muzumdar

For many prosthetists the subject of upper limb prostheses may not be at the forefront of their everyday practice but many do enjoy the unique challenges and rewards associated with this group of amputees. Be they very young or geriatric, we all smile from watching the user gain some new level of function or achieve the ability to perform an activity they had not even considered possible.

This textbook should sit squarely on any prosthetist’s desk as a handy reference in the quest of progressing the upper limb amputee closer to a full and successful outcome with a prosthesis, particularly the powered variety. While this textbook would read as mostly known facts to the prosthetist who regularly deals with this population every week, I think even the seasoned practitioner would gain some new insights from the last four chapters of the book.

The editor, Ashok Muzumdar, presents this new textbook as a “concise yet comprehensive” book on this subject. It is the continuation of the monologues on myoelectric prostheses produced by the Institute of Biomedical Engineering. There are ten chapters, one of which is an extensive bibliography that would provide the more advanced prosthetist the sources to unearth more useful information. The book is highlighted with just the right amount of visual, graphical, and text information to make reading both enjoyable and quick. The individual chapters are written by many known educators and published authors.

Personally I found reading Chapter 5 my favorite, “Meeting the Clients: An Overview.” As a young prosthetist in a limb enhancement clinic many years ago, I often was surprised to see the happiest and most successful young and adolescent users had parents who did not make the prosthesis the sole focus of their child’s existence. This chapter basically echoes those observations. As prosthetists, we can sometimes get too caught up with the “gadget” while leaving the warm and fuzzy stuff to another team member. The chapter’s message is: try to intervene with a prosthesis if it can be of value and do not be surprised that it can be flatly rejected, be it the fanciest electronic or simplest body-powered. All children go through phases in the journey to adulthood and if the prosthesis fills a need, it will be worn.

A nice feature to this textbook is the Q&A at the end of each chapter. I found it useful to check if I had really comprehended what I thought I had. Having uninterrupted time of greater than 15 minutes is rare, so having this simple quiz made my reading time more effective and productive. The entire book follows the same principle of thought; it has a singular and straightforward mission to inform the reader with a minimum of fluff or complex theories and “advanced” techniques.

Purchasing this book as a gift for other valued colleagues will be a gesture well received.