Quality & Individuality
Service manufacturing
Individuality is the top priority at Stamos Prosthetics. Stamos Prosthetics offers a comprehensive range of finger prostheses, partial hand prostheses, arm prostheses, toe prostheses, forefoot prostheses and leg prostheses that are as unique as people and their requirements.
Each prosthesis is a small work of art, which is particularly fascinating due to the individually coordinated and natural color and shape design. In addition, one can profit from the functional advantages and a high wearing comfort.
Service Manufacturing, like the name Stamos Prosthetics, stands for innovation and high quality products. High quality materials like medical grade silicones and the competence and experience are the key factors in the concept.
Service manufacturing guidelines
In order to effectively use Stamos Prosthetics Service Fabrication and ensure smooth order processing, please consider the following points before placing an order.
Please measure dimensions on the patient
Please enclose
a completed measurement sheet with each order
Packing plaster positives shatterproof for shipping
General
When using a trial prosthesis as a basis for fabrication, Stamos Prosthetics assumes that all questions of functionality, biomechanics, fit and compatibility with ready-made everyday items have been clarified here. Therefore, the final prosthesis is made exactly according to the trial prosthesis. No changes are made by Stamos Prosthetics Service Fabrication.
Plaster cast
- When making a plaster cast, please ensure that the region or limb in question is not in extreme positions, such as a finger or finger stump in hyperextension or flexion.
- Use porous plaster to cast the plaster negatives.
Please use a soft pencil to draw the required markings on the plaster positive:
- Limitations of the aid
- Position of closures
- Position of the dressing aids
- Position of the myo-electrode
- Position of the pins
- Position of fasteners
- Plumb line
Positioning of the bars
- Please position these rods centrally, with sufficient distance to the plaster surface to allow reduction.
- The rod should protrude 10 cm from the plaster positive.
- Do not plaster any aluminum profiles, mesh grids, screws or similar.
For finger and hand casts, please cast the hand in the functional position:
- Wrist in 25°-30° extension.
- The wrist should not show any radial or unclear deviation.
- Fingers show slight flexion to allow contact between thumb, index and middle fingers.
- Thumb in direct opposition to index and middle fingers.
Plaster processing
- Plaster models should be shipped dry.
(min. 48h continuously dried at 90°C). - The plaster surface should be smoothed with sandpaper 280.
(For VFP plaster models please send unmodelled).
Supply sequence
1.
Stamos Prosthetics Service Fabrication receives meaningful photos of the clinical situation of the patient to be fitted. In consultation with you, we create a quotation based on the photos, which you receive as a .doc file attached to an e-mail.
2.
To process the order, we require an impression of the side to be restored, an impression of the opposite side and a completely filled out measurement sheet. You can find measurement sheets as printable files on this homepage under “Downloads”.
3.
The information from the plaster models and the measurement sheet serve as the basis for fabricating a trial prosthesis. (Scheduling of the fabrication by arrangement)
4.
The patient wears the trial prosthesis for approx. 3-4 weeks in everyday life. If necessary, modifications are made by suitable machining.
5.
Once the trial prosthesis has been recovered, fabrication of the definitive prosthesis begins.
6.
In order to produce the “Individual” design variant with the lifelike color design, information about the patient’s skin color is required. For this purpose, the patient should visit us in Artà to perform a color matching of the skin and nails. (Duration of the color matching is about 2-3 hours).
Supply variants
Using the example of a finger prosthesis
1.
Individual
In the Individual variant, 5-7 colors for the finger and 3-5 colors for the fingernail are used for color design of the silicone finger prosthesis. This appearance makes the finger prosthesis hardly distinguishable from a real finger.
2.
Classic
3.
Basic
The Basic variant meets all the criteria of a sophisticated fitting, individual socket design, optimum fit, functionality and anatomical shape. The difference lies in the cosmetics. Only one color is used for the color design of the finger and the nail.
Fingernails are faithfully reproduced from paintable acrylic and colored to match.
Acrylic nails are available for the Classic and Individual variants.
FURTHER INFORMATION
Color matching
With the help of color pigments, the colors are mixed individually for the different areas of the finger and selected together with the patient. On average, this is about 6-8 different colors for the finger and 4-5 different colors for the nail. Each color match is a snapshot in time. Changes in the skin due to season, blood circulation, temperature, etc. cannot be reproduced by the silicone. Photos document the color distribution.
Nail making
For nail production, a negative mold of the nails is created from silicone. The various colored acrylic resins are introduced into this mold in approx. 10 steps and polymerized between each color in an autoclave and then ground. For silicone nails, a clear silicone shell is first made into which the various colored silicones are introduced.
Care
The resistance to water makes maintenance possible by washing with soap and water. This reliably removes all residues of sweat. The use of solvents and disinfectants is not necessary. After a longer period of wear, substances that have penetrated the surface can be removed by boiling. This also makes the prosthesis sterile again. Soiling from the outside can be washed off without any problems and does not penetrate the material, as is the case with PVC gloves.
Aging
The silicon-oxygen bond on which silicones are based is so stable that it is not destroyed by UV light, weathering or other influences. This means that silicone is not subject to aging. It is particularly important that this is achieved without the addition of antioxidants, which are required for other plastics and rubbers and whose physiological safety is questionable.
Handling
Due to the elasticity of the material, the prosthesis can also be put on without fasteners. The high surface friction of the silicone can be compensated for by a neutral skin lotion. This is then absorbed into the skin within a short time and the prosthesis has a good hold on the residual limb. Due to the water resistance, it is possible for the patient to go swimming with the prosthesis.
Material description
The silicones used by Stamos Prosthetics are medical grade silicones. These are high temperature vulcanizing silicones of increased tear strength. They are translucent in the unprocessed state and consist of 2 components mixed in a 1:1 ratio. The Shore hardness is variable between 20° Shore A and 65° Shore A. Different hardnesses can be mixed so that all intermediate values can be achieved. Different hardnesses can also be combined in different areas of an auxiliary. Vulcanization is an addition reaction (no substances are released) based on a platinum catalyst.
Physiological harmlessness
Silicone as a base material is physiologically harmless due to its macromolecular structure and the intramolecular bond between silicone and oxygen. The molecules are too large to penetrate the cell membrane and the body’s metabolism is unable to break down these molecules. Most of the properties (temperature resistance, elasticity, etc.) are due to the chemical structure of the silicone and are not achieved by additives (plasticizers, antioxidants, etc.).
The only filler in silicone is silicic acid to improve the mechanical properties. However, silicic acid is known to be administered orally as an additive in tablets and is harmless. The silicones I use are medical grade silicones. These are subject to strict purity requirements with regard to the raw materials and production, and each batch is checked for compliance with these requirements.