Traumatic hemipelvectomy is rarely observed because very few patients have
survived from the initial trauma, We describe one male child who survived f
rom this massive trauma with a good functional outcome. The boy was 28 mont
hs old when he was accidentally struck by a truck. He had severe open traum
a of the pelvis and hemorrhage of the left lower limb. Amputation of the le
ft hemipelvis, colostomy, cystostomy and removal of the left avulsed testic
le were Ix performed. Once healing had been achieved, he was transferred to
our Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and rehabilitative
management was begun, including prosthetic measurement and psychologic inte
rvention fur the patient and his parents. For 13 years of long-term follow-
up, his prosthesis was readjusted annually. Now he is a 16-year-old middle
school student. He is functioning remarkably well with a prosthesis. The ps
ychologic report shows that he is emotionally stable and has good scholasti
c performance. Although hemipelvectomy appears to be a radical procedure in
children, the potential for rehabilitation in a group of children before b
ody image has developed appears to he unexpectedly good.