Iraq War Amputees Get New Limbs, New Life

When they arrive, a team of 15 specialists, from surgeons to psychiatrists, start the rebuilding process. After the physical wound heals, the next stop for the patient is the prosthesis laboratory for the delicate process of fitting the new leg or arm.

Cutting-edge computer imaging is used to make the plastic socket that attaches the new limb to the body. The soldiers then are fitted with top-of-the-line artificial legs and arms.

The legs, made of graphite and titanium, are battery-powered prosthetics with built-in microprocessors to improve control of the swing motion, making it more stable than previous artificial legs, said Joseph Miller, a clinical and research prosthetist at the hospital.

One of the newer products - the "C-leg" - has computerized sensors that can read the strain applied to the leg 50 times a second, then make superfast adjustments to the user's stride to allow the leg to adapt quickly to different walking speeds.

Prosthetic arms have microprocessors, too, with myoelectric hands that can open and close with swifter, sharper movements that help amputees grab and grip as a normal hand would. The high-tech hands also look much more natural.

Each arm or leg can cost up to $100,000.

Paddy Rossbach, head of the Amputee Coalition of America, said the modern artificial limbs make the amputees' difficult transition a little easier.

"The materials used in today's limbs help you walk better, not just give you something to walk on," said Rossbach, whose Knoxville, Tenn.-based organization has counseled recovering soldiers at Walter Reed.

Craft was fitted with the C-leg a few weeks ago. He vividly recalls his first steps. Getting up out of his wheelchair "felt so good," he said.

But Craft realizes his long journey ahead. "It's a real challenge. Every day my body is so sore. I don't know how much I can take. Sometimes I just lay in my bed and cry," he said.

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On the Net:

Walter Reed Army Medical Center: http://www.wramc.amedd.army.mil/