During this time, patient can meet with different manufacturers to see what prosthetic options look like. Additionally, meeting with an occupational therapist (OT) and/or physical therapist (PT) can help improve function with prosthetic device after surgery.

While in the hospital soon after amputation, your care team will provide a shrinker to wear to help heal residual limb.

Care team will teach desensitization techniques, such as gentle tapping, exposure to different textures, and massaging the residual limb. This helps to reduce neural damage and manage phantom limb pain.

Care team will also teach wound care management. Maintaining a clean incision site and preventing wound infections are essential for the recovery process.

Trying out and choosing a prosthetic device usually begins 6-8 weeks after surgical amputation has been performed. Note: time varies depending on how well the tissues heal and other health factors contribute to the variance of time.