Abstract

GARCIA RODRIGUEZ, George Noel et al. The loss of kynesthesia: Impact of amputations on adolescents. Rev Cubana Med Gen Integr [online]. 2008, vol.24, n.3, pp. 0-0. ISSN 1561-3038.

OBJECTIVES: to know how the young people assume the loss of an extremity in a greater o lesser extent, including the physical and psychosocial effects. METHODS: a multisectorial, observational and descriptive study was conducted in 37 patients that underwent amputations of their limbs at the pediatric surgery service of "José Martí" Pediatric Teaching Hospital and "Camilo Cienfuegos" University Hospital of Sancti Spiritus from 1997 to 2007. RESULTS: males and ages over 16 were the most involved in this type of surgery. Overgrowth, the appearance of ghost sensations and the rejection to different prostheses were the main problems in the physical recovery of the lesion. The most frequent psychological aspects observed were anxiety, depression, recurrence to the use of psychotropic drugs, as well as posttraumatic psychological disorders that were detected in 15 % of the adolescents. Females were the most affected. CONCLUSIONS: the difficulty in the social readaptation and the decrease of the quality of life are the major difficulties faced by the adolescents with amputations.

Keywords : Kynesthesia; adolescent; amputations; traffic accidents; ghost sensations; posttraumatic stress syndrome.

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