Quadriceps muscle injury in trans-femoral amputees

Two male trans-femoral amputees using modular trans-femoral prostheses lost control and fell to the ground when their prosthetic knees gave way. The s emi-automatic knee lock malfunctioned in the first case while the free knee stabilising mechanics gave way in the second case. This resulted in a high tensile force acting on the contralateral quadriceps muscle causing it to rupture. As there are a significant number of patients with both kinds of p rostheses it is important to be aware of this possibility so that necessary actions can be taken to minimise its occurrence. Even with the currently a vailable weight activated stance phase control, the prosthetic knee will gi ve way if the knee is flexed more than 20 degrees on weight bearing. Good p ower and control of hip extensors on the amputation side is needed to contr ol the prosthetic knee joint, especially in the early stage of the walking cycle, i.e., from heel strike to mid-stance. Quadriceps muscle injury in am putees, as far as the authors are aware, has not been reported previously.