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ITC Awarded $1.6 Million from Department of Defense
Funding will target advanced prosthetics research at the Center

Canandaigua, NY, February 2009

The FY2009 Department of Defense appropriations bill includes $1.6 million to support research efforts at the Center in the area of advanced prosthetics. This funding was secured through the efforts of former Congressman Jim Walsh (R-Syracuse). Critical areas in the development and use of prosthetic limbs are: 1) wearability (pressure points and rubbing); 2) day to day utility (does the limb actually function to the benefit of the user); and, 3) determining if user’s gait is correct for optimizing movement performance and reducing repetitive stress injuries.

The nation’s veterans face unprecedented challenges in patient care and rehabilitation. Increased longevity of veterans brings age-related health issues and crises that affect mobility and require rehabilitation and/or prostheses. Recovery from stroke or falls, complications of diabetes, and joint replacement affect numerous veterans Furthermore, a new generation of Vets returning from OEF/OIF are surviving significant polytrauma and blast-related injuries beyond the acute phase due to advances in modern medicine. Their survival, however, involves new, complex patterns of injuries affecting multiple body systems.

ITC’s prosthetic research is designed to meet the complex rehabilitation needs of both aging Vets and severely injured Vets returning from war. The goal of ITC’s current research is to create greater opportunities for functional independence, improved quality of life, and successful societal re-integration for veterans of all ages.