World’s Most Advanced Bionic Leg

A teenage amputee has become one of the first non-military people in the UK to be fitted with a waterproof bionic leg, allowing him to sail again.

Laurence Greenough, 18, lost his leg in a sailing accident at sea at the age of 10 when a routine capsize drill and an incident with a safety boat in Plymouth Harbour went wrong, a spokeswoman for the teenager said.

His injuries resulted in an above-the-knee amputation of his left leg, but two months after the accident he was back on the water, using crutches to get around because exposing a normal prosthesis to seawater would cause it to corrode.

But he eventually stopped sailing as the difficulties of doing so without a prosthetic leg became apparent, the spokeswoman said.

After three years on crutches he was referred to Richard Nieveen of ProActive Prosthetics and fitted with a computer-controlled prosthetic “C-Leg” which provided him with improved mobility, but could not be worn on deck due to the risk of water damage.

But his ability to get back on the water has been restored with the help of the world’s most advanced bionic leg developed by mobility experts Ottobock.

The Genium X3, originally designed for military personnel, is the only completely waterproof microprocessor prosthetic knee and has a bluetooth remote control to switch between sailing, walking, jogging and cycling modes. – Plymouth Herald, read on