'''Amputation''' is the removal of a body extremity by [[Physical trauma|trauma]] or [[surgery]]. As a surgical measure, it is used to control pain or a disease process in the affected limb, such as [[cancer|malignancy]] or [[gangrene]]. In some cases, it is carried out on individuals as a preventative surgery for such problems. A special case is the [[congenital amputation]], a [[congenital disorder]], where [[foetus|foetal]] limbs have been cut off by constrictive bands. In some countries, amputation of the hands or feet was or is used as a form of [[punishment]] for criminals. Amputation has also been used as a tactic in war and acts of terrorism. In some cultures and religions, minor amputations or mutilations are considered a ritual accomplishment. Unlike many non-mammalian animals, (such as [[lizard]]s which shed their tails), once removed, human extremities do not grow back. A [[Organ transplant|transplant]] or a [[prosthesis]] are the only options for recovering the loss.
==History==
===Origins of the word===
Amputation is derived from the Latin ''amputare'', to cut away, from ''amb'' (about) and ''putare'' (to prune). The Latin word has never been recorded in a surgical context, being reserved to indicate punishment for criminals. The English word amputation was first applied to surgery in the 17th century, possibly first in Peter Lowe's ''A discourse of the Whole Art of Chirurgerie'' (published in either 1597 or 1612), his work was derived from 16th century French texts and early English writers also used the words "extirpation" (16th century French texts tended to use ''extirper''), "disarticulation," and "dismemberment" (from the Old French ''desmembrer'' and a more common term before the 17th century for limb loss or removal), or simply "cutting." but by the end of the 17th century amputation had come to dominate as the accepted medical term.
===Overview===
The history of human amputation can be divided into a number of periods. Initially the many thousands of years when limb loss was the result of trauma or 'nonsurgical' removal. This was followed by the hesitant beginnings of surgical intervention, mainly on [[gangrene|gangrenous]] limbs or those already terribly damaged, which developed through to surgical amputations around the 15th century, the distinction is marked by the choice of the patient and the aim of saving a life and achieving a healed stump, despite the difficulties with infection and the lack of effective control for pain or blood loss. Improvements in surgical techniques were married with better [[haemorrhage]] control in the 19th century and in the 1840s with [[anaesthesia]] and around twenty years later efficient infection control. The 20th century noted marked improvements in surgical techniques and also a move to increasingly sophisticated prosthetic limbs.
==Types==
Types of amputation include:
* [[leg]]
** amputation of digits
** partial foot amputation (Chopart, Lisfranc)
** ankle disarticulation (Syme, Pyrogoff)
** below-knee amputation (transtibial)
** knee-bearing amputation (knee disarticulation)
** above knee amputation (transfemoral)
** Van-ness rotation/rotationplasty (Foot being turned around and reattached to allow the ankle joint to be used as a knee.)
** hip disarticulation
** [[hemipelvectomy]]
* [[arm]]
** amputation of digits
** metacarpal amputation
** wrist disarticulation
** forearm amputation (transradial)
** elbow disarticulation
** above-elbow amputation (transhumeral)
** shoulder disarticulation and forequarter amputation
** [[Krukenberg procedure]]
*[[teeth]]
**The avulsion of some teeth (mainly incisives) is or was practiced by some cultures for ritual purposes (for instance in the [[Iberomaurusian]] culture of [[Neolithic]] [[North Africa]]).
[[Hemicorporectomy]], or amputation at the waist, is the most radical amputation.
[[Genital modification and mutilation]] may involve amputating tissue (as the case is with [[circumcision]]), although not necessarily as a result of injury or disease.
As a rule, partial amputations are preferred to preserve joint function, but in oncological surgery, disarticulation is favored.
==Reasons for amputation==
* Cancerous bone or soft tissue tumours (e.g. osteosarcoma, osteochondroma, fibrosarcoma, epithelioid sarcoma, synovial sarcoma)
* Severe limb injuries in which the limb cannot be spared or attempts to spare the limb have failed
* Circulation problems
* Deformities of digits and/or limbs (e.g. [[Polydactyly]] or more than the normal number of fingers and/or toes)
* Any advanced cancers
* Gangrene
* Bone infection (osteomyelitis)
* Traumatic amputation (Amputation occurs actually at scene of accident, the limb can be partially or wholly severed)
* Amputation in utero (Amniotic band)
* Punishment/Torture (e.g in some countries, for example the Muslim world, theft is prevented by the threat of amputation of a hand, although the practice is highly controversial and some Islamic authourities are calling for a moratorium upon it<ref>http://www.islamonline.net/English/News/2005-03/30/article07.shtml</ref> until equality, welfare and social justice exist in the Muslim world, as stealing out of desperation, deprivation or adverse social circumstances should not be punished<ref>http://news.independent.co.uk/people/profiles/article2342952.ece</ref>)
* Sometimes professional athletes may choose to have a non-essential digit amputated to relieve chronic pain and impaired performance. [[Daniel Chick]] elected to have his left [[ring finger]] amputated as chronic pain and injury was limiting his performance.<ref>[http://www.rte.ie/sport/2002/0122/aussierules.html RTE: Aussie Rules star has finger removed]</ref> [[Rugby union]] player [[Jone Tawake]] also had a finger removed.<ref>[http://www.sportsaustralia.com/articles/oct06/artid6659.html SportsAustralia.com: Tawake undergoes surgery to remove finger]</ref>
==Method==
[[Image:Curvy amputation knife DSC09451.jpg|thumb|200px|Curved knives such as this one were used, in the past, for some kinds of amputations.]]
The first step is [[ligation|ligating]] the supplying [[artery]] and [[vein]], to prevent [[hemorrhage]]. The muscles are [[transection|transected]], and finally the [[bone]] is sawed through with an [[oscillating]] [[saw]]. Skin and muscle flaps are then transposed over the stump, occasionally with the insertion of elements to attach a [[prosthesis]].
==Self-amputation==
In some rare cases when a person has become trapped in a deserted place, with no means of communication or hope of rescue, the victim has amputated his own limb:
* In 2007, 66-year old Al Hill amputated his leg below the knee using his pocketknife after the leg got stuck beneath a felled tree he was cutting in [[California]]. [http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8PJM6B80&show_article=1]
* In 2003, 27-year old [[Aron Ralston]] amputated his [[forearm]] using his [[pocketknife]] and breaking and tearing the two [[bone]]s, after the arm got stuck under a boulder when hiking in [[Utah]].
* Also in 2003, an Australian coal miner amputated his own arm with a [[Stanley knife]] after it became trapped when the [[front-end loader]] he was driving overturned three kilometers underground. [http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/06/29/1056825279321.html]
* In the 1990s, a crab fisherman got his arm caught in the winch during a storm and had to amputate it at the shoulder, as reported in [[The New Englander]].
Even rarer are cases where self-amputation is performed for criminal or political purposes:
* Documentary filmmaker [[Errol Morris]] was ordered to "leave town within twenty-four hours or leave in a casket" by the unnamed "king of the nubbies" of the town of [[Vernon, Florida]] (which Morris called "Nub City"), when he was researching a documentary about a bizarre scam wherein individuals would cut off their own limbs as a way to collect insurance money.[http://www.errolmorris.com/content/profile/singer_predilections.html] The final version of ''[[Vernon, Florida (film)|Vernon, Florida]]'' contains no references to this scam.
* On [[March 7]] [[1998]], Daniel Rudolph, the elder brother of the [[Centennial Olympic Park bombing|1996 Olympics bomber]] [[Eric Robert Rudolph]], videotaped himself cutting off one of his own hands with an electric saw in order to "send a message to the FBI and the media." [http://www-cgi.cnn.com/US/9803/09/briefs.pm/rudolph.amputation/]
[[Body Integrity Identity Disorder]] is a psychological condition in which an individual feels compelled to remove one or more of their body parts, usually a limb. In some cases, that individual may take drastic measures to remove the offending appendages, either by causing irreparable damage to the limb so that medical intervention can not save the limb, or by causing the limb to be severed.
==After-effects==
A large proportion of amputees (50-80%) experience the phenomenon of [[phantom limb]]s;<ref>{{cite journal | month = January | year = 2005 | title = Phantom Input | author = Heidi Schultz | work = The Science of Things | journal = National Geographic Magazine |url=http://magma.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0501/resources_who.html}} </ref> they feel body parts that are no longer there. These limbs can itch, ache, and feel as if they are moving. Some scientists believe it has to do with a kind of neural map that the brain has of the body, which sends information to the rest of the brain about limbs regardless of their existence. Phantom sensations and phantom pain may also occur after the removal of body parts other than the limbs, e.g. after amputation of the breast, extraction of a tooth (phantom tooth pain) or removal of an eye ([[phantom eye syndrome]]). A similar phenomenon is unexplained sensation in a body part unrelated to the amputated limb. It has been hypothesized that the portion of the brain responsible for processing stimulation from amputated limbs, being deprived of input, actually expands into the surrounding brain, such that an individual who has had an arm amputated will experience unexplained pressure or movement on their face or head. The individual may also experience some trauma as well as emotional discomfort.
In many cases, the phantom limb aids in adaptation to a prosthesis, as it permits the person to experience [[proprioception]] of the prosthetic limb.
Another side-effect can be [[heterotopic ossification]], especially when a bone injury is combined with a head injury. The brain signals the bone to grow instead of scar tissue to form, and nodules and other growth can interfere with prosthetics and sometimes require further operations. This type of injury has been especially common among soldiers wounded by [[improvised explosive device]]s in the [[Iraq war]]. [http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/03/26/MNSOLDIERS26.DTL]
==Notable amputees==
* [[Rick Allen (drummer)|Rick Allen]] — Drummer for the band [[Def Leppard]]; lost his left arm in a car accident.
* [[Lucien Bouchard]] — [[Canadian]] [[politician]] and [[Québécois]] [[nationalist]]; lost a leg to [[necrotizing fasciitis]].
* [[Roberto Carlos (singer)|Roberto Carlos]] — [[Brazilian]] [[singer]]; lost his leg in a train accident.
* [[Graham Edwards (politician)|Graham Edwards]] — [[Australian]] politician; lost both legs in the [[Vietnam War]].
* [[Terry Fox]] — [[Canada|Canadian]] [[Athlete (track and field)|athlete]] and [[cancer]] treatment activist; lost a leg to cancer.
* [[Zach Gowen]] — [[United States|American]] [[professional wrestler]]; lost a leg to cancer as a child.
* [[Bionica von Takedown]] — [[United States|American]] [[roller derby]] girl; lost her leg in automobile accident.
* [[Bethany Hamilton]] — [[United States|American]] [[surfer]]; lost an arm to a [[shark attack]]
* [[Oscar Pistorius]] — [[South African]] [[Sprint (race)|sprinter]]; lost both lower legs due to a [[congenital disorder]].
* [[Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva]] — president of Brazil ([[2003]]–present); lost a finger while working in a factory at age of 19.
* [[Heather Mills]] — [[English]] [[Model (person)|model]]; lost the right leg after a hit by police motorcycle in London.
* [[Aimee Mullins]] — [[American]] [[Model (person)|model]] and [[athlete]]; lost both legs due to congenital disease.
==See also==
* [[Tourniquet]]
* [[Body Integrity Identity Disorder]] - condition where a person desires amputation of a healthy limb
* [[Autotomy]]
* [[Diabetes]]
* [[Amputee Soccer Championship, Central America]]
* [[Amputee fetishism]]
==References==
<references/>
==External links==
[http://www.amputee.ie/]. Amputee.ie an Irish service for Amputees, their friends, carers and professionals.The organisation provides a range of information and advice services including a 24 hour call messaging service, e-mail queries, on-line forum, postal queries and peer-to-peer counselling,
*[http://www.wales.nhs.uk/alas Artificial Limb & Appliance Sevice of Wales]
*[http://www.sonofthesouth.net/leefoundation/amputation.htm Amputation] from Cooper's 1835 "Practice of Surgery"
*The [http://www.amputee.nl amputee website] from the UMC St Radboud Amputee Team
*[http://www.oandpcare.org/public/ OandPCare.org] provide information for amputees, their families, the media and the general public on prosthetic care for amputees.
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planet_Terror Planet Terror] Film featuring a main character who loses her leg.
[[Category:Surgical specialties]]
[[Category:Surgical removal procedures| ]]
[[ar:بتر]]
[[bg:Ампутация]]
[[cs:Amputace]]
[[de:Amputation]]
[[es:Amputación]]
[[eo:Amputo]]
[[fr:Amputation]]
[[gl:Amputación]]
[[id:Amputasi]]
[[ia:Amputation]]
[[it:Amputazione]]
[[nl:Amputatie]]
[[pl:Amputacja]]
[[pt:Amputação]]
[[ru:Ампутация]]
[[fi:Amputaatio]]
[[sv:Amputation]]
[[uk:Ампутація]]