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A dairy farmer with artificial leg






Research on artificial limb support






Village hut roof being mended by a person with artidial limb fitted at Gandhigram
 













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Artificial Limb Unit lab at Gandhigram
Dr. R. G. Kumble of DST on a visit to Gandhigram, suggested that Kasturba Hospital with its facilities and workshop should consider starting an Artificial Limb Research Centre at Gandhigram under the guidance of the famous Dr. P. K. Sethi - the inventor of the Jaipur Foot. This suggestion brought to light a dire need for a low cost and local need based artificial foot in the rural society. On being contacted Dr. Sethi with his wife reached Gandhigram within the next 2 days and said that he too has been looking for a place in Southern India for manufacturing the Jaipur foot.
Sri. M. R. Rajagopalan, Dr. Kousalya Devi and Mr. Michael (Mechanic) went to Jaipur and they were very impressed with Dr. Sethi's sacred and sentimental commitment to the programme. Mr. Michael spent three months learning every detail of the Jaipur foot piece, fitting an artificial limb, communication with the beneficiaries and satisfying their needs. Dr. Kausalya Devi too spent time at Jaipur to understand the way the Jaipur foot was administered.

While considering the rubber required to produce the artificial feet, the TVS rubber factory at Madurai entered the scene. The TVS family to which Dr. Soundaram (the founder of Gandhigram) belonged to, was always forthcoming to be associated with Gandhigram's work and immediately agreed to provide superior quality rubber for the artificial feet manufacturing and also provide technical manpower help.

Salient features of ALRC Centre
Demystification of Technology: Making or a Prosthesis (artificial limb) is generally considered as high technology. The product is also high priced and the poor and lower middle class amputees cannot afford them. The ALRC in Gandhigram has broken this myth and is producing the artificial limb selling at a price affordable by the poor.

A model that is Indian and versatile: Till Jaipur foot was introduced in 1970, only western model of limb was available in India. These were designed for a western lifestyle - sitting on a chair, using a western closet, etc. which hardly anybody in rural India had. The new design developed by Dr. P. K. Sethi takes into account not only the functional demands of the floor sitting, barefoot walking culture of the majority of our population but it also added new dimensions a much more flexible foot piece, with more freedom of movements than is currently available in an prosthetic foot anywhere in the world. The fact that it has a cosmetic appeal of resembling a natural foot and is resistant to water as well as the rugged terrain of our countryside, is an additional benefit.

Help resume normal life: Gandhigram ALRC insists that the person with the artificial feet resume normal life as just with the original feet, hence patients treated here today are part of the regular society performing their functions, the patients include: doctors, lawyers, office managers, clerks, labourers, traders, army men, artisans, etc.
Artificial Limb Research
A tree-climber with
artificial leg
They started manufacturing in 1988 based on the Jaipur model. The rubber supplied from TVS is far superior to even the original Jaipur model.

Total rehabilitation programme is provided by the ALU with a well provided for training centre in which the patient can train with the new limbs. It takes approximately between 10 days to a month for people to get trained with their new feet.

The success rate of people fitted with limbs from here has been 90 - 95%. On an average 15 - 20 people are treated each month.

Most of the patients are from the districts of Madurai, Dindigul, Theni, Trichy, Ramnad, Sivagangai, and Munnar districts of Kerala. 60% of those who come for treatment are referred by earlier patients and increasingly even doctors now have started to recommend patients to this centre.

Innovation includes:
1. Knee-joint mechanism with sys-lock of the knee joint, this was a major development from the regular method used for knee-lock which was using callipers. The callipers needed the person using them to periodically lock-un-lock.
2. 'Sym's foot' for sym's amputation people using the Jaipur foot technology is another innovation of Gandhigram
3. Currently, orthopaedic appliances for polio patients are being developed and tried out.
4. Different die is used to cast the feet of people of different ages and different background (width).

The cost of the Gandhigram produced feet (below knee joint) is Rs.1000/-
With above knee joint also Rs. 2000/-
A artificial limb fitted here would be good for anywhere between 5 - 6 years.

Artificial limbs from this centre have also been exported to Bangladesh and Mozambique.