Amputation is one of the most grievous physical experiences a body can go through, no matter the journey to that profoundly life-altering end result.
From fingers to limbs, millions experience amputation globally, and for an incredibly wide variety of different reasons. Here, we will explore some of the main causes for amputation – whether as an event or a medical outcome – and the ways in which amputations can be prevented, treated or otherwise accommodated.
Common Causes
Amputation, of course, describes the loss of a limb or of part of a limb. Amputations can be as small as part of a finger or toe, and can extend to the complete loss of a limb. The first cause of amputation that comes to mind for most is traumatic injury, wherein a limb or part of a limb is damaged beyond repair or traumatically removed during an accident or event.
Military action is a commonly-understood source of amputation injury, given the high level of media exposure that such injuries and victims receive. However, only 66 military personnel suffered partial or complete amputation between 2022 and 2023 – a low number in comparison to equivalent injuries sustained from road traffic accidents.
It isn’t just traumatic injury that can cause amputation, though. Disease and infection is a far more common cause, whether by irretrievably infected wounds, side-effects of rare viruses or as a treatment option for cancer. However, arguably the most common cause of amputation in the UK is due to diabetes, complications of which can starve blood flow to extremities and require amputation as a last resort.
Prevention Tips
With diabetes dramatically increasing amputation risk in comparison to health individuals, it is people with diabetes that have the most control with regard to prevention. Properly controlling sugar intake and maintaining a healthy diet is the best possible route to amputation prevention, and a policy which also works for healthy people; healthy balanced diets can reduce cancer risks, in turn minimising eventual amputation risk.
Treatment Options
With reference to diabetes in particular, medicine has advanced significantly. There are many pathways to safely controlling either Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes, and effective testing processes that can identify prediabetic conditions before diabetes sets in. In some cases, diabetes can even be reversed, thus slashing the likelihood of amputation.
Life After Amputation
Of course, for some, amputation is an unavoidable reality. Tragic accidents on the road or in the workplace can still lead to traumatic injury, and forever change the trajectory of your life in the process. Where such accidents were avoidable, amputation claims could yield recourse through compensation – which could in turn fund quality-of-life changes such as accessibility accommodations at home.
Amputation, whatever the cause, is a traumatic event. As well as ongoing medical care and rehabilitation, life after amputation requires therapeutic assistance. Counselling sessions are vital to helping you in your relationship with your new body.
