At Commonwealth Hand and Physical Therapy, our mission is to provide a comprehensive and global approach to treat individuals recovering from upper extremity amputations including finger or partial hand, wrist, at or below the elbow, above the elbow and at the shoulder. We use a collaborative team of Occupation, Physical and Certified Hand Therapist to provide wholistic care to meet patient goals. We also work collaboratively with Kenny Orthopedics for prosthetic services and Agrability to help individual in agriculture continue their work following injury.
Treatment
Treatment is customized and designed to empower patients to reach individual goals and increase ability to participate in daily life, work, and their community.
Treatment includes:
- Wound care including debridement and dressings
- Scar management and desensitization using thermal, mechanical, and electrical techniques:
- Paraffin to soften adhesions
- Vibration
- TENS unit
- Silicone and elastomer for reshaping and flatten scar
- Phantom limb pain interventions:
- Graded motor imagery
- Recognize app
- Imagined Movements
- Mirror Therapy
- Graded motor imagery
- Motor Control inventions:
- Biofeedback
- Functional Activities
- Core Stability to enhance functional endurance and control of prosthetics:
- Scapular stability prevent compensatory movements that lead to inefficient movement patterns and increase risk of injury
- Adaptive equipment to increase independence and safety with daily activities.
- Prosthetic training with ADL and IADL training
Orthotics
Our therapists are trained to evaluate and fit patients with prefabricated and custom-made orthotics to maintain muscle length and maximize range of motion, prevent joint contracture or deformity, protect healing tissue, desensitization, and increase functional use of the upper extremity.
Functional Outcomes
Each patient is evaluated using standardized assessments to identify individual goals and track progress throughout treatment:
- Functional outcome measures:
- Canadian Occupational Performance Measures (COPM)
- Quick Disability of Arm, Shoulder, Hand (Quick DASH)
- A Survey on Activities of Daily Living and Occupations of Upper Extremity Amputees
- Fine and Gross motor assessments:
- Purdue Peg Board
- Box and Blocks, Minnesota Rate of Manipulation Test
- Bennett Tool Dexterity Test
- Pain using Visual Analog Scale
