Ten days since last blog.
Four of those days were at the prosthesis shop getting my socket reworked. My socket problems are now getting almost trivial. I am not concerned with walking, but concerned with walking fast for 5 km. A very small miss fitting of the socket while moving around the kitchen, can becomes a major problem when walking 5 km.
Last Saturday I did another Park Run. I finished in 1hr 24min. That is about a 25% improvement from the run a week before. At that rate of improvement, I will break the sound barrier in just under 6 months. (26 weeks)
At the prosthetic shop I met a man with a left leg, above the knee, amputation. He lost his leg 5 years ago. He spent one year on a Mauch Knee, one year on a Total Knee 2000, and now uses a bionic Rheo Knee. I asked him a ton of questions in just a few minutes.
He is about 30 years old, and a livestock auctioneer. He spends 5 days a week walking among cattle, sheep and pigs. He is on his feet the whole day. He says the bionic knee changed his life even more than when he got his first prosthetic leg. He says the bionic leg doesn't even need thinking about. He puts it on in the morning, and next thinks about it that night when he takes it off. He said to "Don't try one unless you have cash to buy one."
The hardest thing for him was walking up and down the many ramps. Herding cattle into trucks and out of truck into pens. He said that ramps are shit things, literally. With the Total knee 2000 and the Mauch knee he battled. With the Bionic Rheo Knee he doesn't even think about them.
One thing you have to understand about prosthetics, is the "K" rating. Medical aid societies had to have a way of grading the potential for an amputee to use the prosthesis. They don't want to pay for a super expensive prosthesis, that will only live in the closet. They developed the K rating to describe an amputees mobility potential.
K1 - Inside the house, usually with a walking aid.
K2 - Slow walking around the neighbor hood, and ability to navigate small obstacles like curbs.
K3 - Long walking, and ability to go up and down stairs, usually step over step.
K4 - Athletics. Like Running, or Tennis.
If you are a K1, then the medical aid will not buy you a super running knee.
I am a K3.
The livestock auctioneer is a K2. The Bionic Rheo Knee is for K2 amputees. It is not an athletic knee. No bionic knees are rated for K3 or K4.
The Total Knee 2000 I am using now is a K3 Knee. The Mauch knee is a K2/K3 knee. There are very few K4 knees.
The K rating does not mean it is a better knee, or costs more. But it signifies usage. A K4 knee may be a problem in the kitchen because it needs to break loose easy and quick. Not very stable when reaching for a cup of coffee.
Of course, the best would be to have many legs, for different purposes. A K2 leg for weekend bar-b-ques or office work, and a K4 leg for sports.
The auctioneer still uses his old Mauch Knee leg when he goes Bass fishing.
He isn't on Medical Aid, but has a rich father. The Bionic Knee cost almost 5 times what the Total knee 2000 cost him, and that was much more than the Mauch Knee.
I took my leg in yesterday. I am legless today and tomorrow. They are doing many mods to the leg. They are cutting holes in the socket. They put the socket in a laser scan machine, and it finds stress paths. Where there is no stress, they will cut holes. I think there will be 4 holes cut. Each about the size of my fist.
Since this socket has a thick silicone liner in it, the stump will be able to expand where the holes are cut. this will allow me to wear the leg much better in the morning when the stump is still swollen a bit. Now it takes 1 to 2 hours until my stump will fit all the way into the socket. Only then can I walk without limping. The holes should also reduce the chance of "hot spot" pressure points that may cause blisters.
They are re positioning the pylon attachment point to bring my feet closer together while standing. The closer my feet are, to my center of gravity while walking, means much less wasted energy.
My prosthetist found a used Total Knee 2100, and he will put it on, and let me use it for 2 weeks. :-) The Total Knee 2100 is an upgraded Total Knee 2000. It has larger hydraulics, and more adjustments. It is a K4 leg. Many of the special Olympic runners use a Total Knee 2100.
The best news is that Ossur will loan me a Bionic Rheo Knee. We will put it on in 2 weeks when the Total Knee 2100 comes off.
I would love a K2 bionic knee for going shopping, or trips to the mall. But I need a K3 or K4 knee for Park Runs.
In the back of my mind is the selling of my house in Texas, and the RV in Florida, so I can buy a good knee.
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