Jenny Kennedy secures ground-breaking bionic prosthetic leg for amputee

As part of a settlement Jenny Kennedy has secured funding for a revolutionary prosthetic leg for a client who suffered a serious injury following an accident whilst at work.

The BiOM leg has a power assisted ankle system that emulates lost muscle and tendon function following a lower limb amputation. The unique technology, called Bionic Propulsion, normalises ankle-foot mechanics as well as powering movement.  The claim is that this helps to enable amputees to walk faster whilst using less energy, enabling the person to live life with greater enjoyment and ease.

In development since 2006, it was invented by Professor Hugh Hurr, himself a double amputee, within the leg laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Manufactured in the United States, the BiOM device first came to prominence when the U.S Department of Defence recognised its benefit and purchased hundreds of devices for service men and women injured in military conflict. More recently, the BiOM has been in the news in the US as it has helped a professional ballroom dancer who suffered a below the knee amputation after being injured in the Boston Marathon bombing, return to dancing less than a year after suffering her injury.

Although numbers are on the rise, the first BiOM prosthetic was only fitted in Europe in 2013 and Jenny’s client is thought to be only one of a very small number in the UK who have been fitted with such a device.

On how the bionic prosthetic was included as part of the claim, Jenny says: “My client was fortunate in being able to trial a BiOM leg alternating its use with a more conventional prosthetic leg, and he found he benefited greatly from it.  After he tried the limb I secured an interim payment to purchase it.  As a result we were able to demonstrate its benefits to the defendant insurers who, in a settlement meeting, were impressed enough not contest this part of the claim.”

Anthony Gold’s Injury and Medical Claims team specialise in dealing with high value and complex cases, many of which involve clients who have suffered an amputation following an accident. With technological advancements now being used to assist the rehabilitation of the injured, Anthony Gold is driven to ensuring clients receive the very latest technology available that can help to enhance both recovery time and quality of life.