The BiOM Powered Ankle has a code!

K-5 and BEYOND

RUNNING CLINIC

OPC Running Clinic

Join us on September 27^th at 12:00 (noon) for an above knee running clinic.

The event will take place at the OPC Fairfax office. Participation is limited to above knee amputees, but all are welcome to attend, observe, ask questions and learn!  You don't want to miss this opportunity!

 

 Name:

Email:

Address:

Phone:

Amputation level:

I would like to       _______    Participate   _______Observe the running clinic at OPC.

Please detail your experience running with a prosthesis. Prior experience is not necessary, but would be helpful to know for planning purposes.

Please email the above information to  peggy@opc1.com  

See you on the 27th!

Best Wishes Joan!

Click-to-Fit Adjustable Socket

At OPC, we pride ourselves on providing the best prosthetic care for our patients. We are committed to supplying contemporary prosthetic and orthotic care with old-fashioned service and quality. Prosthetics are unique to the individual, with each person possessing his own set of issues, goals and needs. We carefully evaluate and and help our patients formulate a prosthetic care plan that will help them reach their personal best.

Numerous advances in the field have recently benefited our patients. The most noticeable advancement lies with bionic devices. Powered and moving components have revolutionized prosthetic care and have helped to transform lives. However, bionic devices are only part of the story.

Until now, the most common way to adjust for volume fluctuation was with the adding and subtracting of socks.  Any experienced prosthetic wearer will attest that socket fit and comfort are paramount, and having to constantly adjust socks becomes an issue of inconvenience, quality of life and in extreme cases, safety. We have long recognized that an adjustable socket would benefit our patients, and we have been working diligently towards this goal.

We are delighted to introduce an advancement to socket design that we are confident will help many of our patients, especially those with volume fluctuation issues. OPC is proud to introduce the Click to Fit Socket, featuring the Boa system.

Utilizing the Boa system, the wearer is able to adjust for volume fluctuations by dialing in their own comfort without the donning and doffing of socks. The socket can accommodate up to 12 ply and can be adjusted quickly- without removing the device. The socket features a flexible inner liner, which allows us to maintain suspension, and a carbon fiber shell which has been cut into a series of panels. The Boa cords are thread through the outer socket wall and panels. The panels and the Boa system work together to allow the socket to adjust to the limb, rather than trying to get the limb to fit into the fixed socket.

If the socket feels too big, instead of putting on a 3 ply sock, the wearer needs only to turn the dial a few clicks to achieve optimum comfort. Too snug?  No problem! Simply pull the dial to release some slack within the panels, making the socket bigger.  Integrating the Boa system, long renown for its strength and reliability by athletes, into a paneled socket provides amputees with a safe, easy and convenient means to adjust for volume changes.

If socks have you in bunches and you have been seeking a better way, give us a call. We put the ability to adjust at your fingertips with the Fit to Click socket. 

An OPC Olympian!

In 1972, a seed was planted  in a young boy living in Maryland. Watching the Winter Olympic games, he vowed that one day he would  become an Olympian himself. Young Elliot Weintrob never lost sight of that goal, and after a lot of hard work, the dream was realized when he walked into the Opening Ceremony in Barcelona in 1992.

Elliot was first introduced to kayaking when he was an eight year old camper at Valley Mill Day Camp. While all of his friends amused themselves with other sports, all Elliot wanted to do was stay in the boat. His passion for kayaking was immediate, and it was obvious to all around him that he had a talent.

Between the ages of eight and fifteen, Elliot was immersed in white water kayaking and racing. He trained hard and rose to the top of the youth ranks. Traveling the country to compete, he was winning national competitions when he decided to take a break at the age of fifteen. During his hiatus from the sport, he concentrated his efforts on high school football and traditional teenage activities which included wooing girls and socializing.

As his senior year came to a close, Elliot was pulled again by his love of the kayak. Upon graduation he moved to California to teach kayaking. He soon contacted his former coach and the pair began to aggressively train for his comeback. 

In 1984 he was named to the National Development Team and earned a position on the National Team in 1986. In 1988 an announcement was made that changed the course of Elliot’s life: White Water Kayaking was going to return to the Olympic roster for 1992.

Upon hearing the announcement he decided to dedicate the next four years of his life to realizing his Olympic dream. The story goes that Elliot informed his parents of his decision in a matter-of-fact manner by walking into Harry’s office and saying, “I just wanted to let you know that I’m going to be training for the next four years to go to the Olympics.” Without missing a beat, Harry simply looked up from the ledger and said, “You’d better make it then.”

Elliot devoted the next four years of his life to the sport of white water slalom (kayaking) and moved to North Carolina to train with other aspiring Olympians. As he recalls, he trained hard and had the time of his life.

Despite setbacks, including his partner getting injured the month before the Olympic trials, Elliot and his partner won the first Olympic trial. The dream of being in the Olympics was realized, and Elliot prepared for an amazing two weeks in Barcelona.

Speaking of the Olympic race today, Elliot admits that his team “didn’t race as well as we could have.” He did not win a medal, but he did have an incredible experience. He walked away from Barcelona with the pride of being an Olympian and memories that he will always cherish.

 

Debunking the "Prosthetic Advantage"

With Oscar Pistorius set to run in the Olympics on Saturday, the controversy of the "unfair advantage" has hit a boiling point. It seems that forums and blogs are popping up everywhere supporting the prosthetic advantage theory. We firmly believe that these commentators are simply misinformed about the facts. We want to take this opportunity to set the record straight.

The controversy first came to light several years ago when Oscar made his first bid at the Olympics. An Olympic scientific committee was convened to examine the issue with the findings initially seeming to confirm the "prosthetic advantage." According to researchers, Pistorius' cheetah legs provided him with an astounding 90% energy return, considerably higher than the purported 60% by the intact human foot. Immediately the controversy of whether or not carbon fiber prostheses sparked an unfair advantage hit a furious speed.

Upon further examination, it was discovered that researchers involved with the initial study failed to cite the energy return of the human foot with an intact calf muscle (which, in the case of Pistorius is obviously missing). The human foot, with an intact calf muscle, has an energy return of 254%. All seem to agree that a prosthesis cannot provide more than 90% return due to energy lost due to components. It was determined that the carbon fiber prostheses render Pistorius with a 164% energy return deficit over his bi-legged competitors. Although very good prosthetics, the technology does not replace the muscle lost.

With the energy return theory debunked, many are citing differences in oxygen expenditures as an unfair advantage.  Naysayers rationalization that an amputee does not have to work as hard to walk and move because the prosthesis does the work. Obviously these individuals have never tried to walk on a prosthesis!

It has long been accepted by authorities in the field that amputees have to work harder to ambulate and to run. The body must compensate for the lack of muscle and bone, putting more strain on the remaining structures. According to research from the Amputee Research Centre, a bilateral below knee amputee (such as Oscar) expends a whopping 200% increase in oxygen consumption to simply walk. Oscar uses more energy when walking and running because of his prostheses, not less.

The fact remains that on Saturday morning, Oscar will take to the track and run because he has earned his position, not because he has somehow cheated. Insinuating an "amputee advantage" is insulting to every individual living with a limb loss. He has achieved Olympian status because of his will and his hard work, not because of the carbon fiber and components in his prosthesis.