Skip to content

Sustainable Prosthetic Assistance for Resilient Kids in Youthful South Africa

Research Project Overview

South Africa holds the unfortunate distinction of having one of the highest road injury death rates globally. The public health impact of road injuries surpasses that of tuberculosis and maternal disorders. Notably, road traffic accidents contribute significantly to the incidence of amputations, with a considerable number affecting children and youth. Compounding this issue is the inadequate healthcare system, leading to a higher prevalence of amputations caused by various diseases that are not adequately treated. The maturation of children and youth further complicate matters, posing challenges in ensuring a sustainable supply of accurately fitted prosthetics. Consequently, a substantial number of children and youth in South Africa either lack access to prosthetics or are fitted with ill-suited ones, adversely affecting their development and increasing susceptibility to non-communicable diseases later in life. Our proposed solution to this pressing problem involves leveraging 3D printing technology to provide sustainable and affordable prosthetics for South African children and youth amputees.

Methodological approach

Co-design to establish appropriate research methods to answer the research question(s)

Team members

Nottingham Trent University

  • Professor Angus Hunter, Lead, Head the Department of Sport Science and Professor in Neuromuscular Physiology, School of Science and Technology, Nottingham Trent University
  • Professor Phil Breedon, Professor of Smart Technologies, Nottingham Trent University
  • Dr Tom Inns, Postdoctoral Research Associate, Sport Science, Nottingham Trent University
  • Dr Cleveland Barnett, Department of Sport Science, School of Science and Technology, Nottingham Trent University

University of Cape Town, South Africa

  • Professor Sudesh Sivarasu, Department of Human Biology, Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, South Africa
  • Dr Yumna Albertus,  Neuromuscular physiology Researcher, Division of Exercise Science and Sports Medicine, Neuroscience Institute, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, South Africa
  • Dr Michael Awood, Chief Technical Officer - Disability & Assistive Technologies, UCT MedTech, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, South Africa