The World of Prosthetic Limbs: Costs and Technology

More and more Americans rely on prostheses. They’re custom-fitted, highly personal, and extremely expensive. Zachary Crockett investigates.

• SOURCES:
  • Jordan Beckwith, YouTuber and advocate.
  • Eric Neufeld, owner and medical director of Agile Orthopedics.

• RESOURCES:
  • "Medicare Coverage of Durable Medical Equipment & Other Devices," by Medicare (2024).
  • "Limb Loss in the U.S.," infographic by the Amputee Coalition (2022).
  • "A Robot Hand Helps Amputees 'Feel' Again," by Jeffery Delviscio (Scientific American, 2019).
  • "Differences in Myoelectric and Body-Powered Upper-Limb Prostheses: Systematic Literature Review," by Stephanie L. Carey, Derek J. Lura, and Jason Highsmith (Journal of Rehabilitation Research and Development, 2015).
  • "Local Coverage Determination: Lower Limb Prostheses," from the Medicare Coverage Database (effective 2015).
  • "Variation in the Care of Surgical Conditions: Diabetes and Peripheral Arterial Disease," by Philip P. Goodney, Nino Dzebisashvili, David C. Goodman, and Kristen K. Bronner (Dartmouth Atlas of Health Care Series, 2014).
  • "Estimating the Prevalence of Limb Loss in the United States: 2005 to 2050," by Kathryn Ziegler-Graham, Ellen J. MacKenzie, Patti L. Ephraim, Thomas G. Travison, and Ron Brookmeyer (Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 2008).