Researchers have developed a new bionic knee which is integrated into the existing muscle and bone tissue. The advantage of this procedure is that it allows those with above-the-knee amputations to mobilise faster and to climb stairs and avoid obstacles more easily.

The new procedure is at an early stage, and larger clinical trials will be required over the next five years, so it will be some time before the procedure becomes available to claimants either privately or on the NHS. 

However, advancements such as these have the potential to change the amputation claims landscape in the future. Greater mobility will lead to improvements in quality of life for those with amputations and will also lead to reductions in the overall cost of claims, with improved mobility minimising heads of claim such as loss of earnings and care.

We have experience of claims involving claimants who have undergone osseointegration for below-the-knee and through-the-knee amputations – including one claimant who had this procedure on the NHS in Scotland. We have seen the positive impact that osseointegration has on the individual, with improved mobility, greater independence, and reduced pain, and the corresponding reduction in settlement sums. Above the knee amputations are more challenging for mobility and quality of life, so the potential for this new procedure to bring improvements to this type of amputation claim in the future is significant.