Must. Stop. Clicking. August 3 by Steve
In an earlier post, I discussed the problem of my leg clicking. Although I’ve more or less solved the problem of my socket being a bit tight, I haven’t made any headway with the clicking — which is now beginning to drive me a little batty.
We’re used to receiving sensory feedback when we walk, but it’s mostly physical and phenomenological. We feel our legs swing through the air, our feet rollover, our arms swing at our sides, our trunks gently sway side to side and roll up and down. We feel ourselves walk. But I don’t usually hear myself walk, and I find it really distracting.
I spent an evening diagnosing the clicking and figured out it’s the lock. I figured it had to be either the lock or the foot because they’re the only two components with moving parts. I started walking around my living room and quietly listened. I could hear the leg click when when I stepped down on it, at heel strike, so I removed the foot shell and the spectra sock inside the foot and tried walking around on just the carbon fiber. There’s no way the foot could have been clicking at that point, but the leg was still clicking, so it must be the lock.
I tried using an Allen wrench to tighten the pin in my silicone liner (which was indeed loose) and that improved things: the clicking is quieter, but still there. So I called the shop and made an appointment for next Wednesday. I’ll see Bill, another prosthetist there, about the clicking and getting my foot dorsiflexed a little, and pick up a stump shrinker.
Adam Aug 7
Hi Steve,
My friend just forwarded me the link for your website. This is great stuff.
I am a bk amputee because of a birth defect. I was born without a fibula and my tibia is shorter on my right side than my left. My right foot was amputated below the ankle (symes?), but the heel pad stitched on to help with end bearing pressures. This is very nice for hobbling to the shower in the morning or around the swimming pool in the summer.
I used a Carbon Copy foot through grade school and high school which always broke or became considerably less responsive after a couple or few weeks of athletics. I played football, soccer, basketball, ran track, and wrestled. Then in college I used a Springlite 2 foot which was a dream come true. I could run faster accelerate more quickly, and jump higher. Because I sweat a lot I enjoy a stump sock plus p-lite suspension as opposed to the locking silicone sleeve.
I’ve found your comments very helpful because now in my late 20s I broke the Springlite and am getting fitted for a new prosthesis for the first time in 9 years. I am currently trying the Renegade because of its shock absorbing heel and good keel response. (I’ve had a couple knee surgeries for torn cartilege and need to try to take pressure off of it.) But I am anxious to test the foot and see if it “bottoms out” like yours did. Perhaps if we increase the load bearing capacity? As I scanned your posts, I didn’t notice if the foot you chose (VariFlex, I think?) had any similar shock absorbing qualities. How do you find that it compares with the Renegade in that department?
Good luck with your new leg and thanks again for the site!
Adam
naomi duffey Aug 10
I click too. I figure, if that’s the worst, I can deal. This foot has lasted almost 3 years - a record for me. I’ve had 6, including the first - foot on a stick temporary. Every now and then the click has me almost pounding the prosthesis on rocks, but as I said, it could be worse. Thanks for the site. Do you have nerve pain, where it feels like you’re plugged into an electric plant?
Stephanie Nov 16
Hi! I have been in this field for 10 years and have discovered that the clicking sounds usually comes from one of two places. The first is the set screws on the pyramids. To fix this take them out one at a time and flatten the face that comes in cotact with the pyramid with either a metal file or scrape them on concrete. If this doesn’t work it is probably the tube clamp which usually means that you need a different pylon or tube clamp. Most likely the two pieces don’t fit together well or the pylon was not cut smoothly. I hope this helps!