Standing Tall

Today Suzanne received her second prosthetic leg. This is the first time in over 15 months that she has stood upright, on her own. There is a great deal of discomfort in the pair, as she is now putting all of her weight onto her patellar tendons. Over the course of the coming weeks, and after much physical therapy, she should be able to walk unassisted. However for the time being, she has a walker and her wheelchair to get around. We are all very excited about this milestone and look forward to her increased mobility and comfort. (Click Image to Enlarge)

More details about Suzanne's prosthetic feet here and here.

Brazilian Model Dies from Sepsis

A 20-year-old Brazilian model, Mariana Bridi da Costa, whose feet and hands were amputated due to a septic infection has died. Da Costa fell ill on December 30, but was initially misdiagnosed with kidney stones. By the time the cause was detected, she had developed septicaemia from Pseudomonas aeruginosa. This story highlights the rapid deterioration resulting from sepsis and the unfortunate inability of the medical community to recognize the signs and symptoms of this deadly illness. More 1 2 3

Amputee Fights for Coverage of Prosthetics

Good Morning America reported this morning about a Virginia woman, Susan Bailey, who fell ill after eating an E. coli infected meal. Because of the course of the infection, doctors were forced to perform a double above-knee amputation on Susan. The GMA article does not focus on the infection or treatment, but rather the decision by her insurance company not to pay for the high-end prosthetic legs. "Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield refused to pay for the more expensive C-Legs because they were experimental and not medically necessary. More than 25,000 C-Legs have been used by amputees." There was a "happy" ending to the story as a result of GMA contacting the Virginia Bureau of Insurance, which regulates insurers. They reviewed her case and within a few weeks, the state overruled Anthem and ordered them to pay for her new legs. There is a six minute long video at the GMA website, if you are interested.
This story highlights some of the unfortunate circumstances that occur between insurance providers and amputees. Because Suzanne has below-knee prosthetics, she has not encountered the same sort of resistance, as of yet. We hope this remains true going forward.