An amputation is the surgical removal of part of the body, usually a leg or an arm. There are three main reasons why an amputation is performed:
- The limb has been affected by gangrene (when the body’s tissue begins to decay and die as a result of loss of blood supply).
- The limb poses a life-threatening danger to the person’s health, for example because it has been affected by cancer or a serious infection.
- The limb has experienced serious trauma, such as a crush or blast wound.
How common are amputations?
Approximately 5,000 amputations are carried out in the UK every year. The most common reason for an amputation is a loss of blood supply to the affected limb (dysvascularity), which accounts for 70% of all amputations.
People with either type 1 diabetes or type 2 diabetes are particularly at risk and are 15 times more likely to need an amputation than the general population. This is because the high blood glucose levels associated with diabetes can damage the blood vessels, leading to a restriction in blood supply.
Half of all amputations are performed in people aged 65 or over and men are twice as likely to need an amputation as women.
Prosthetics
After the amputation, it may be possible to fit a prosthetic (artificial) limb onto the remaining stump. Prosthetic limbs have become increasingly sophisticated and can reproduce many functions of the hands, arms and legs.
For example, many people with a transtibial amputation (removing the foot and lower section of the leg from beneath the knee) can walk or ride a bike using a prosthetic limb.
However, adjusting to life with a prosthetic limb often requires an extensive course of physiotherapy and rehabilitation. Also, you need a lot more physical energy to use a prosthetic limb as the rest of your body has to compensate for the missing muscle and bone that has been removed during the amputation. This is why frail people or those with a serious health condition, such as heart disease, may not be suitable for a prosthetic limb.
Psychological impact
The loss of a limb can have a considerable psychological impact. Many people who have had an amputation reported feeling emotions such as grief and bereavement, similar to experiencing the death of a loved one.
Coming to terms with the psychological impact of an amputation is therefore often as important as coping with the physical demands.
People who have had an amputation due to trauma (especially members of the armed forces who were injured while serving in Iraq or Afghanistan) have an increased risk of developing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
PTSD is when a person experiences a number of unpleasant symptoms after a traumatic event, such as ‘reliving’ the event and feeling anxious all the time. For more information, see the Health A-Z topic on PTSD.
Outlook
The outlook for people with an amputation often depends on a number of factors, such as:
- their age (younger people tend to cope better with the physical demands of adjusting to life with an amputation)
- how much of the limb was removed (if less of the limb is removed, there will be a greater range of movement in the prosthetic limb)
- how well they cope with the emotional and psychological impact of amputation
A common complication that can occur after an amputation is phantom limb pain. This is when a person experiences a sensation that their limb is still attached to their body and is causing them pain (see Amputation – complications for more information). Phantom limb pain can be treated with a range of medications.
