Terminal Devices for Women and People with Smaller Hands

As upper limb prosthetic technology advances, more options are available for women and people with smaller hands. For multi-articulating or single-motor myoelectric hands, the first generation of those devices were all sized to match a typical male hand. Only in the last few years has the industry progressed to create smaller myoelectric hands that fit smaller individuals. Additionally, prosthetic components for people with partial hand differences are now available in smaller sizes. There are also quite a few terminal devices that provide excellent functionality (like body-powered hooks, ETDs, and activity-specific devices) but since they don’t resemble hands, the size is not an issue.

Back in 2015, our patient Angel Giuffria was one of the first people to wear the bebionic3 from Ottobock:

Other multi-articulating myoelectric hands include the i-Limb, the Michelangelo hand and the TASKA hand. The i-Limb® Quantum has four sizes, from extra small to large. The Michelangelo only offers one size. The TASKA hand comes in two sizes, the original and the TASKA-CX, which is not only smaller, but has an improved button layout and other upgrades from the previous version.

Single-motor myoelectric hands, which are covered in a cosmetic glove, are often available in different sizes. The MyoHand VariPlus Speed from Ottobock and the Motion Control hand from Fillauer are each offered in three different sizes.

Naked Prosthetics and Point Designs offer prosthetic digits of varying sizes and lengths for individuals with a partial hand difference, where part of their fingers or hand are missing. There are body-powered prostheses for people who have some remaining finger or thumb length. For those missing one finger joint, the PIPDriver™ offers sizing options. If more than one finger joint is missing, the MCPDriver™ is available. Both of these options require casting and measurements, so they are customized to the individual. For passive devices, Point Designs, featured below, offers the Point Digit Mini (to the right of the hand) in addition to the Point Digit and Partial Point Digit.

These are a great option for someone who has their palm but is missing one or more fingers. For these devices, the user positions the prosthetic fingers with their sound hand.. The Digit Mini device, seen here in comparison with the larger Point Digit, can accommodate smaller hands, including those of children.

For people who would like a prosthesis that looks a lot a human hand, those are passive silicone restorations and are usually created from a cast of the person’s sound hand, so the size is a perfect match.

If you are ready for a terminal or partial hand device that is more in line with the size of your body, please contact us. Our prosthetists and technicians make sure our patients are happy with the look and function of their prosthesis, and our clinical therapy specialists teach them how to use their device. Your goals are our goals. Have you had experience with different sizes of terminal devices? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below. Cheers to choice!

You can find more related articles below:

• Introduction to Multi-Articulating Myoelectric Hands
• Single-Motor Myoelectric Hands
• Introduction to Body-Powered Hooks
• Introduction to Electric Terminal Devices
• An Introduction to Passive Silicone Restorations