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ARTIFICIAL LIMBS

WONDERFUL DEVELOPMENTS,

Colonel A.-Honman was commissioned, by the-Commonwealth Government a year ago to visit the principal orthopaedic .centres of Great Britain and the Continent, and to'report on the latest developments in surgical and mechanical science for enabling men who had,lost a limb to earn a living at manual work. Colonel Honman, who returned to Australia by the' Nestor,' was greatly impressed by the remarkable progress, both eurgicftl and mechanical, made during '■ the'-wari'W-Burgery, • particularly •- the "muscular loop."- Avoiding what would be to the layman unintelligible technicalitiea,' the , loop may be described, as being formed at the extremity of an amputated stump by first surgically dividing, and then keeping permanently separate, muscles in euch a way that when their, extremities are subsequently sewn together, they form literally a loop.- By "educating" the muscles operated upon, .their, activity is increased to a marked extent. Thus- by the volition of tho patient this "loop" can soon be made to expand and contract-freely. . It is this, expansion and contraction that furnishes the motive power for actuating the artificial limb whioh is fitted to the stump, '■ "I shall never forget," said Colonel Honman, "the expression on the face of a man who had beeu provided with a muscular loop' I have spoken of when he; used it for the: first time in co-ordin-ation- on artificial, hand,; As soon as ..the hand was fitted I placed' a-, cigarette;. <..on a table, and asked' Mm to have a smoke. Hβ picked-tho cigarette up (much to his own. astonishment), and put it.between his lips without effort. Ldo'iiot remember seeing anyone mor.e agreeably surprised." In a like manner use may be made of the expansion and contraction of a muscular loop to enable a man to control the movements of an artificial leg. There lmvo been great improvements also in the method.of, attaching an artificial limb to the. 6tump. The cumbersome "harness" ,can now be, done away with, and "muscular: attachment" substituted for it, For. muscular- attachment there is a sort of ; cradle supporting the stump, and laced to it in suoh a way as rot to impede circulation. To the cradle, thus seourely held in position, the artificial limb is fixed- •'•• ; : ■

It is a mistake,. Colonel Honman thinks, to- discharge'disabled soldiers too soon. Artificial iimbs are irksome to wear at first, and if the men are free to discard them-and f hey are, of course, when no longer under control—they are only teo apt to do. bo. On the other hand, were it compulsory, use would epon be.come second nalure. On'.the Nestor, where muscular education and the training 6f disablett men in the uee~of arti. ficial limbs was persevered in throughout the voyage, he had practical experience pf the truth of this. Colonel Honman mfentipns that he was under great obligations ..to Mr.Meikle, cliief engineer ot the Nestor, who gave skilled assistance in the making of artificial limbs. The men provided with' them are still wearing them, and they have proved entirely satisfactory.

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/DOM19190219.2.40

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 124, 19 February 1919, Page 7

Word count
Tapeke kupu
496

ARTIFICIAL LIMBS Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 124, 19 February 1919, Page 7

ARTIFICIAL LIMBS Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 124, 19 February 1919, Page 7

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