Does Laser Hair Removal Improve Quality Of Life For Military Amputees?

Military amputees need the continued care of a dermatologist because of the skin problems that comes along with wearing an artificial limb. It helps you to detect skin problems in their early stages and to get treated by a doctor. If not, you may have to quit wearing your prosthesis and return to bed rest. Here are a few things to consider about how laser treatment improves life for military amputees.

Residual Limb

Residual limb refers to the part of the body that remains after amputation. You have to wear a tight rubber sleeve over the residual limb before putting on your prosthetic device. Skin conditions and other problems occur because your residual limb is not used to handling the pressure of walking.

Wearing the rubber sleeve also causes sweating. According to Health News Digest, around 40 percent of military amputees experience irritation and sweating at the residual limb. The sweating can cause abscesses and infections.

How it Affect Your Quality of Life?

Skin problems affect your quality of life because they reduce the amount of time that you wear the prosthesis. Example of skin problems may include dermatitis, itching, pulling leg hair, boils, sweat rashes, psoriasis and calluses. If your physician is treating you for a skin condition, then he or she may recommend for you to not wear your prosthesis while healing.

Laser Treatment

Military dermatologists have been using laser hair removal to treat amputees for skin conditions since 2002, according to Healio. Laser hair treatment is procedure that beams a light into your hair follicles. The laser kills the hair follicles so they cannot produce hair any more. This procedure is safe to use anywhere on the body.

Sweating and irritation are two of the most common problems associated with wearing a prosthetic. Laser treatment reduces sweating and patients tend to get less friction blisters. Amputees also feel more secure because the decrease in sweating means less slippage from the prosthetic.

Heavy demands are put on your residual limb from lifting and walking. Some amputees make the mistake of not getting treatment for skin conditions. Leaving the condition untreated can lead to more serious infections. This is a problem because it affects your economic, social and mental rehabilitation. Laser hair removal treatment is being used at many facilities that treat military amputees. This procedures improve skin conditions and allows you to wear your prosthesis on a regular basis.

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