Newsletters

January Newsletter

Volume 6                   Issue 1

Israeli Physicians at A Step Ahead

For the past 2 years, A Step Ahead has been providing prosthetic care for many injured Israeli soldiers. The Israeli Ministry of Defense is interested in expanding this program, which would include an educational component for prosthetic technicians in Israel provided by A Step Ahead prosthetists and physical therapists from Mobility Physical Therapy. It is anticipated that this expanded program will commence in the second quarter of 2009 with an educational mobility clinic in Israel.

Peer Visitor Training Seminar - A Step Ahead Prosthetics hosted an Amputee Coalition of America (ACA) -certified peer visitor training seminar on February 23 at Glen Cove Hospital. The peer visitor training program is a nationwide program developed and coordinated by the ACA.

Donation of Custom Wheelchair - Winners of one of the 2007 Runners World Heroes of Running Awards Jamie and Lynn Parks of Tinley Park, Illinois, received a new, customized racing chair from A Step Ahead. Jamie and Lynn have been racing together since 1991.

Jamie and Lynn Parks

ABC Certification - A Step Ahead Prosthetics received its official ABC (American Board for Certification in Orthotics, Prosthetics & Pedorthics) facility accreditation. Accreditation indicates that the facility has met established standards set by Medicare as well as indicating a high level of dedication and commitment to the profession.

i-Limb Certification - A Step Ahead Prosthetics became an official provider of the Touch Bionics i-Limb System.  The i-Limb Hand is the first prosthetic device with five individually powered digits. The i-Limb is a next generation prosthetic device and is lightweight and highly appealing to patients.

The i-Limb

Touro College Physical Therapy School Visit - Twenty two students from the doctoral program in physical therapy at Touro College attended a three hour lecture and demonstration at A Step Ahead. The students saw the latest in technology and design in upper extremity and lower extremity prosthetics first-hand.

Asael Shabo, a 15-year-old boy from Israel whose right leg was amputated above the knee more then 6 years ago after a terrorist attack, returned to his home in Israel with two new prosthetic legs after spending a week at A Step Ahead Prosthetics. In 2002, Asael's family's home was attacked. During the shooting, which caused his above knee amputation, his mother and three of his sisters were killed.

Asael Shabo

Research - A Step Ahead conducted research with the Touro College Doctoral Physical Therapy program entitled "Reliability and Reproducibility of the Temporal and Spatial Parameters of Gait in Individuals with Lower Extremity Amputations Utilizing a Ceterus Foot."

A Step Ahead and Adelphi University began a research study entitled "The Run Efficiency of Amputee Athletes with Prostheses." The purpose of this study is to evaluate the energy cost of the Flex Run prosthetic foot and match the optimal prosthetic stiffness to the athlete at various run speeds.

Kati Rooney

Harvey Parry, a 2-year-old, double above knee amputee from Northern London received two new above knee prostheses from A Step Ahead Prosthetics after he was unable to get appropriate prosthetic legs in England.

Harvey Parry

Physician Visit from Israel - On October 15th and 16th, Dr. Uri Oppenheim of the Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer Hospital in Israel visited A Step Ahead. Dr. Oppenheim is an orthopedic surgeon and rehabilitation physician who specializes in the treatment of patients with limb loss.

News and Press Coverage:

Charlie Steele (BK) was featured in an ABC news story on diabetes and amputations. The story was part of a series on diabetes by ABC entitled "Ignore Warning Signs, Lose a Limb. Diabetes: Mean, Nasty and Silent Disease Is Leading Cause of Amputation."

An article on Kelly Bruno (BK) was on the front page of the NY Times Sports Section and in the NY Post.  Kelly is the first amputee to work at the US Open as a ball person.

Kelly Bruno

Cate Hughes (BK), Victoria Cutrone Foley (AK), and Amy Palmiero-Winters (AK) were featured in a front page story in the Philadelphia Inquirer on their team racing at the SheROX triathlon on Sunday, September 3.

Kenny Bontz (AK) was featured in a full-page story in the New York Daily News sports section. The story focused on Kenny's competition against able-bodied golfers and his attempt to be the first golfer with a disability to qualify for the New Jersey State Amateur Golf Championship.

Kenny Bontz

Shlomo Nimrodi (AK) was featured in a five page article in an Israeli publication entitled "Halohem" ("The Warrior" in Hebrew). The publication is distributed to approximately 50,000 Israeli war veterans who have suffered from an injury during their military service.

Shlomo Nimrodi

 Muscle & Fitness Magazine's September edition featured a story on Jesse Levine (AK) in its Success Stories section. Jesse is an above knee amputee who was in a serious car accident in July 2004.

Tomasz Starnawski (AK) was featured in an article in the PT Advance entitled "Standing Tall, One Physical Therapist Helps a Patient Realize His Dream of Running Again."

Ben Simmons (AK) was featured on an NBC show entitled "My First Time." The show was about three runners with different challenges who ran the New York City Marathon for the first time.

Max Gold (Hip Disarticulation) was featured in a story in the New York Non-Profit Press. The story in the October edition focused on a local film festival that highlighted films about people with disabilities.

Max Gold

 The story of Jamie & Lynn Parks was told on Sunday December 14 at 8pm ET on the Discovery Health Channel in a one hour documentary entitled "Marathon Love."

Michael LaForgia (BK/transmetarsal amputee) of Smithtown, New York, was featured in a full-length story in Readers Digest about his battle to survive the affects of meningococcemia. He was also the keynote speaker at the opening ceremonies for the Empire State Games for the Physically Challenged.

2008 brought continued expansion to Team A Step Ahead, especially in the growth of the Junior Team A Step Ahead program. For the first time, the junior athletes participated in a five-mile relay race in Central Park at the Hope and Possibility Race, indoor and outdoor rock climbing, the SheROX triathlon in Philadelphia, and the Westchester Triathlon. In addition, the juniors assisted thousands of runners in the NYC marathon at the PowerBar Gel Station.

Highlights for the adult athletes included Tommy Koehler's (BK) great performance at the Lake Placid Ironman in an all-day, wind-driven downpour; Kelly Bruno's (BK) completion of her third Ironman; Amy Palmiero-Winters' (BK) first Ironman in Brazil and first Ultramarathon Trail Run on Long Island; Kenny Bontz's (AK) overall win at the Eastern Amputee Golf Championship at Bethpage State Park; Allison Jones' (AK) silver medal in cycling at the Paralympics; Jesse Karmazain's (BK) silver medal in rowing at the Paralympics; Ben Simmons' (AK) first marathon at the NYC Marathon; Michael LaForgia's (BK/Trans-Metatarsal) and Kati Rooney's (BK) first Olympic-distance triathlon at the N.Y.C. Triathlon; John Tartaglio's (Bilateral hip disarticulation) completion of his first 1/2 Ironman at the Amica Ironman 70.3 Triathlon in Rhode Island; 4 medals at the I.T.U. world Triathlon championships; Tomasz Starnawski's (AK) first 1/2 marathon, and Kelly Bruno (BK) serving as the first ball person with a disability at the United States Open Tennis Championships.

Three new athletes joined Team A Step Ahead: Jeff Glasbrenner (BK) of Little Rock, Arkansas; Andy Hatcher (BK) of Alexandria, Virginia; and Jean Draper (BK) of Arlington Heights, Illinois.

Plans for 2009 will focus on increasing the events for Junior Team A Step Ahead as well as focusing on high-profile events for the adult athletes.

The 32nd annual ASPIRE 10 kilometer race will be held on Saturday, April 4 at 9:00 am in Plainview, Long Island. Team A Step Ahead is looking forward to the largest turnout for this annual fundraising event for ASPIRE. This is an annual race that raises money for ASPIRE, a non-profit organization that provides financial support to individuals with limb loss who participate in sports and recreational activities. The larger the turnout of amputee runners at this event, the greater potential for increased fundraising for ASPIRE and future events will be.

Besides the 10 kilometer (6.2 mile) event, amputees will have the opportunity to do a 5K (3.1 mile) race. For the junior athletes, there is a 1/2 mile "fun run" for children under 12 at 8am. You do not have to be a competitive runner to participate in this race. Please contact us if you are planning to run the ASPIRE 10K in April. Our facility and staff are available to you for training advice for the ASPIRE 10K and for any other competition you are planning in 2009.

Amputee News is a wide reaching website that provides internet links to many stories about amputees, amputee products, amputee sports and many topics related to individuals with limb loss.
http://amputeenews.com/default.aspx

Advances in Upper Extremity Prosthetic Technology

Amazing new technology is on the horizon for individuals with limb loss. A neurally-controlled arm and hand prosthesis that will perform, look, and feel like a natural limb is the goal of two Revolutionizing Prosthetics programs funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). DARPA's push to jump-start the production of an advanced, neurally-controlled prosthesis consists of two inter-related programs: Revolutionizing Prosthetics 2007, which has produced a working advanced prosthetic arm and hand with a neural interface; and Revolutionizing Prosthetics 2009, which will have a neurally-controlled arm and hand prosthesis ready for FDA approval and clinical trials in four years.

The Revolutionizing Prosthetics 2007 program was awarded to DEKA Research and Development Corp. of Manchester, NH. They have designed and fabricated an advanced prosthetic arm and hand nicknamed the "Luke" arm. DEKA is working closely with medical researchers at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, who have successfully developed and surgically-attached, thought-controlled prosthetic arms and hands. Other organizations and agencies working on this project are the Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) of Johns Hopkins University; Northwestern University, which houses its prosthetics research at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago facilities; and Canadian researchers at the Institute of Biomedical Engineering at the University of New Brunswick.

The Luke Arm

 The first phase of this program has developed the Luke Arm, which has been tested with patients who have complete amputation of their arm (shoulder disarticulation). The long-term goal will be to use the technological advances developed in these projects for amputees at all levels.  

To read more and view video of this research, please visit the following links:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6R5bm6qx2E
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B0QJeRuWijs
http://www.spectrum.ieee.org/print/5957

Skiing, snow boarding, and ice skating are fun winter sports. At A Step Ahead, we can custom align your prosthesis so you can enjoy these activities safely. In addition to alignment, we custom fabricate knee orthoses and stump helmets to protect your residual limb. Knee braces are essential for below the knee amputees who ski. While skiing, your knee will be subjected to side to side forces that will place excessive strain on your knee joint. A custom brace can be fabricated to attach to your prosthesis and will provide improved side to side stability reducing the risk of injury to your knee.

Below Knee Custom Ski Prosthesis

If you are an above the knee amputee, skiing without your prosthesis is common. A stump helmet is a device that will encompass and protect your residual limb if you fall. They are designed to reduce the risk of bruising and possible fractures of the bone in your residual limb.

Some above knee amputees are beginning to ski with a prosthesis using a specialized prosthetic knee called the XT9. The XT9 Energy Storing Prosthetic Knee, made by Symbiotechs USA, LLC for high activity AK amputees, is the first prosthesis designed to enable AK amputees to enjoy extreme sports and an active life at the top level. Thanks to an aerospace-grade, lightweight knee frame and other space-age materials and components, the XT9 prosthetic knee can withstand the forces generated in extreme sports by even the most active amputees. For more information on the XT9 knee, call our office or go to the Symbiotechs website: http://xt-9.com/ If you are gearing up for winter sports or are interested in a custom prosthesis for any sport, call our office to speak to one of our prosthetists.

The next ASPIRE amputee support group meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, January 28 at 6:15 pm at the Hospital for Special Surgery, located at 535 East 70th Street, NY.  For more information about the ASPIRE support group contact Charlie Steele at charlieatl@aol.com or (212) 877-7050.

New York-Presbyterian Hospital Amputee Education and Support Group Every First Friday of the Month 9-11 AM in the Hoyt Board Room, Children's Hospital of New York in Room 121, 3959 Broadway New York, NY 10032. (Enter on West 167th and Broadway at the glass Energy Court.). For further information and to RSVP, contact Sharon Clark at 212-305-3964.  

The Long Island amputee support group meets the first Saturday of each month at South Side Hospital, 301 East Main Street in Bayshore. If you are interested in joining this group, contact Jodi Adler at 631-968-3330.

Join Dave Balsley, P.T. and Phil Kreuter, P.T. at the Jericho High School track on Long Island for their monthly mobility clinic at 10 am on Sunday January 25. They will provide instruction in gait training and running techniques as well as advanced mobility skills. Dave and Phil have extensive experience working with amputees of all ages and activity levels. Come work out with world-class athletes and learn from experienced coaches and physical therapists. The setting is relaxed and enjoyable. There is no pressure; come learn and see what you can do to improve yourself or just to watch. For more information and directions to the mobility clinic, call the office at 516-681-3484.

 

The Amputee Coalition of America (ACA) calls on activists to mobilize for their Second Annual Lobby Day. Activists will converge in Washington, DC on March 10th.

Much has been made of our country's health care crisis during the recent election cycle. These challenges are certainly felt by many of the almost two million amputees across the United States who are facing their own personal health care crisis in the form of restrictions, limitations, and exemptions on their coverage.

Amputees are being refused the insurance benefits they need to live active and productive lives. Coverage is variable and often inadequate to meet individual needs. The ACA is committed to tackling these issues head-on through legislative remedies as well as playing a role in the larger debate around health care reform.

To meet the needs of their members, the ACA is working to expand and diversify their legislative agenda. The ACA is calling on lawmakers to support policies and regulations that ensure access to care in government health programs and address the Medicare two year waiting period and "in home" restriction on assistive devices.

The ACA must continue to mobilize activists to demonstrate the need and support our legislative initiatives. Activists will come together in Washington, DC for the ACA's second annual lobby day on March 10th. The ACA is calling on its supporters to put this date on their calendar and join this important event.

To learn more about the ACA's Congressional efforts, contact the ACA at federal@amputee-coalition.org or 202-742-1886.

SAVE THE DATE and join the ACA for this important event!  It is crucial that all lawmakers hear from their constituents.

The ACA is hoping to set up a block of hotel rooms with a discount rate. In addition, they will reach out to set up meetings with representatives and senators from each state.  They will also provide you with up to date information and materials. They can also work with you to identify possible funders to support your travel expenses. They are putting out a sponsor kit after Thanksgiving.

For more information about the ACA Lobby Day go to: www.amputee-coalition.org/advocacy/lobby-day/

Amputee Coalition of America Calls on Congress to Eliminate Two-Year Waiting Period for Medicare

The Amputee Coalition of America recently joined a coalition of more than 65 health advocacy organizations to urge the next Congress to end the 24-month wait for Medicare coverage faced by people with disabilities. When the Medicare program expanded to cover individuals with disabilities in 1972, a waiting period was implemented to limit costs and ensure that only those with severe and long-term disabilities would qualify for the program.

The prevalence rate for amputation is highest among people aged 65 years and older. Fortunately, older amputees are able to enroll and receive Medicare coverage within months of reaching the age of eligibility.

Most of the approximately 1.6 million amputees under the age of 65 are able to work full-time and maintain health care coverage under employer-supported insurance plans. However, those with less functionality may seek public health coverage under programs such as Medicare for severe and long term disabilities. Unfortunately the Medicare option comes with a two year waiting period for eligibility. This waiting period forces many amputees to put off needed care.

There is a fiscal impact of delayed care, as well as an extreme burden on the health and quality of life of individuals with limb loss. No one with disabilities severe enough to qualify for disability benefits should be without health insurance.

The Coalition to End the Two-Year Wait for Medicare recently sent a letter to Democratic and Republican leaders of the Senate Finance Committee and the House Ways and Means Committee calling for health coverage for people with disabilities to be at the forefront of efforts to cover the uninsured during the 111th Congress.

Legislation to phase out the waiting period over ten years has been introduced in the House and Senate.  As Congress and our new administration address America's health care crisis, they must place a high priority on closing the gap in coverage that affects a group of Americans most in need of guaranteed access to health care-people with severe disabilities who are waiting to become eligible for Medicare coverage.

This delay in health coverage for the most vulnerable among us must end. This issue is one of the many facing amputees as they attempt to access the care they need to reach their full potentials.  The ACA is working to tackle these issues head on with the help of their supporters. This topic will be one of the issues addressed at the upcoming lobby day on March 10, 2009.