Therapeutic Intermittent Compression Socket

The purpose of this project is to develop a device that provides rapid intermittent compression to the residual limb of amputees that do not have good blood flow in their limbs. During Phase II, the project develops an actuator that: (1) mimics the pressures and rise times of currently available pneumatic intermittent compression systems, (2) produces a compression profile that has been shown to be clinically effective, (3) can be fit to residual limbs with different shapes and sizes, (4) can be easily incorporated into prosthetic socket, and (5) has had its efficacy demonstrated on human subjects. The device is portable to provide the user with therapy throughout the day, which frees the user from being confined to a chair for up to six hours each day in order to receive the prescribed amount of therapy. The goal of the device is to reduce the number of ulcers that form, help those ulcers that do form to heal, and ultimately reduce the number of reamputation surgeries that need to occur by increasing blood flow in the limb.