Upper Limb Prosthetics
Arm and hand prostheses, including myoelectric hands and elbows.
About upper limb prosthetics
An upper limb prosthesis replaces part or all of an arm, a hand or some fingers. We make them for every level, from a single finger to the whole arm at the shoulder, for adults and children.
We measure and fit each one here, make the harness where one is needed, and help with the rehabilitation that goes with a new arm. An arm can be worked by your shoulders through a cable, or by the signals of your own muscles, or it can be made mainly to look natural.
Below are the levels of arm prosthesis and the ways an arm can work, then the partial hands, body-powered arms, myoelectric hands, gloves and liners we fit, with two short videos of prosthetic hands in use.
Not sure which you need? Phone us on 011 782 7809 to book an assessment, and we’ll work it out with you. Read about your first prosthesis, step by step.
Levels of arm prosthesis
The prosthesis is named after where the arm was amputated. The higher the amputation, the more joints it has to replace. Every level can be made body-powered or myoelectric.
- Below the elbowtransradial
- A hand or hook, and a wrist.
- Through the elbowelbow disarticulation
- A hand or hook, a wrist and an elbow.
- Above the elbowtranshumeral
- A hand or hook, a wrist and an elbow.
- At the shouldershoulder disarticulation
- A hand or hook, a wrist, an elbow and a shoulder joint.
- Below the wristpartial hand
- One or more fingers, a thumb or part of the hand. See partial hands and fingers
Which kind of arm?
An arm or hand works in one of four ways. Choose one to see the hands, fingers or gloves for it.
- Partial hand and fingersFor missing fingers, a thumb or part of the hand. Moved by your own knuckle or by small motors.
- Body-poweredA harness across your shoulders pulls a cable that opens the hand or hook. Tough, simple and the more affordable choice.
- MyoelectricMotors move the hand, worked by signals from your own muscles. More grips, and a battery you charge.
- CosmeticMade to look like your own hand, for simple holding. Light and easy to wear.
Partial hands and fingers
For people missing fingers, a thumb or part of the hand, with the wrist and the rest of the hand in place. A partial hand prosthesis brings back length and grip, so both hands can share the work again.
Naked Prosthetics MCPDriver™
Suits: an index, middle, ring or little finger missing at its first bone, with the knuckle still working
A metal finger driven by your own knuckle. When you bend the knuckle, the finger bends with it, so you can pinch, hold a key and close your hand around things again.
Read more
Each one is made to measure from a mould and photos of your hand, and built to stand up to hard daily use.
Naked Prosthetics ThumbDriver™
Suits: a thumb missing at its first bone, with the thumb’s knuckle still working
A thumb that moves with the base of your own thumb, so you can pinch between thumb and fingers and hold larger things firmly.
Read more
You can change how far it is bent while you are wearing it, to suit whatever you are picking up.
Naked Prosthetics GripLock Finger™
Suits: fingers missing at or above the knuckle, where no knuckle is left to drive a finger
A finger you set by hand. Press it against your other hand or a table and it bends and locks at the angle you choose; a small lever on the back lets it straighten again.
Read more
We fit it to a socket made for your hand, and it can be combined with the MCPDriver™ and ThumbDriver™.
Össur i-Digits™ Quantum and Access
Suits: missing fingers or part of the hand, where you want powered fingers
Myoelectric fingers for a partial hand. Each finger has its own small motor, worked by signals from your own muscles, so the fingers close around things of different shapes.
Read more
There are two versions: the Quantum, with more grips, and the simpler Access.
Body-powered arms
A harness across your shoulders works a cable. Move your shoulders and the cable opens the hand or hook; at the higher levels it also bends the elbow. These arms are durable, simple to look after and the more affordable choice. We make the harnesses here as well.
Ottobock System Hand (8K22 and 8K23)
Suits: any arm worked by a cable, below or above the elbow
A hand you open by pulling the cable. When you let go it closes and holds on by itself, so you don’t have to keep pulling to keep hold of something.
Read more
There are two models, the 8K22 and the 8K23, each in four sizes, from teenagers and women to men. The photos show the hand’s working frame, and the hand in its cover. Over the cover goes a glove matched to your skin.
Ottobock MovoHook 2Grip
Suits: people who want a working hook for jobs a hand finds awkward
A stainless steel hook worked by the cable, which opens up to 10 cm.
Read more
There are two versions. One is plain steel. The other has coated jaws that hold paper, glass and other slippery things more securely, and that slide through a sleeve without catching when you get dressed.
Myoelectric hands
A myoelectric hand has small motors, worked by the muscles of your arm: tense a muscle and the hand opens or closes. Sensors in the socket pick up the signals, and a battery you charge powers the hand. First is the hand we fit most, then the others from the simplest to the most advanced.
Össur i-Limb® Quantum, Access and Ultra
Suits: most people choosing a myoelectric hand, below or above the elbow
The hand we fit most often. Each finger has its own motor, so the hand closes around things of different shapes and can make many different grips.
Read more
Össur makes it in three versions, which differ in how many grips they offer and how you switch between them. We help you choose the one that fits how you use your hands.
Ottobock MyoBock® system
Suits: myoelectric arms below the elbow
Ottobock’s system for myoelectric arms: hands, wrists and grippers worked by the muscles of your forearm. The two Speed hands below are part of it.
Ottobock SensorHand Speed
Suits: everyday use, for women, men and teenagers
A strong, quick everyday hand that opens and closes. It feels when something starts to slip, such as a wet glass, and firms up its grip so you don’t drop it.
Read more
The wrist turns, so you can set the hand at the angle you need.
Ottobock MyoHand VariPlus Speed
Suits: everyday use, where the usual way of controlling a hand doesn’t work well for you
Built like the SensorHand Speed and just as strong and quick, with more ways to control it. It has six programmes to choose from, so we can set it to the muscle signals that work best for you.
Ottobock bebionic hand
Suits: people who use their hand for a wide range of tasks
A hand with many grip patterns, from holding a key to carrying a bag, chosen to suit what you are doing. It is one of the most advanced hands available, and one of the most expensive.
Ottobock Michelangelo Hand
Suits: people who want a natural-looking hand with several grips
The most advanced hand we fit. It moves through several grip patterns, opens wide, and looks and moves much like a natural hand.
Read more
It wears its own glove, the Ottobock AxonSkin, made in six skin colours to protect the hand and give it a natural look.
Ottobock DynamicArm®
Suits: above-elbow amputations
A myoelectric elbow, which bends and straightens the arm under the control of your own muscles.
Read more
Have an above-elbow amputation and wondering whether we can help? We can: the DynamicArm® joins the forearm and hand to give you a working elbow.
See prosthetic hands at work
Gloves and cosmetic hands
A glove protects a hand’s working parts and gives it a natural look. When the look of the arm matters most, a cosmetic (passive) hand gives a natural appearance for simple holding. It also suits people who find an active arm hard to use.
Ottobock MyoSkin Natural
Suits: Ottobock myoelectric hands
Our most lifelike glove for a myoelectric hand. It is made in layers, with a clear outer skin over fine coloured threads that look like the veins under real skin.
Read more
It is tough, easy to clean and made in six skin colours.
Ottobock prosthetic gloves
Suits: Ottobock System Hands and other cable-worked hands
The standard glove for a hand worked by a cable. It comes in 18 shades, so we can match your skin closely, and in a more lifelike Skin Natural version in six colours.
Ottobock passive hand for children
Suits: young children who need a natural-looking hand
A child-sized hand that does not move, made to look like a child’s own. It comes for the left or the right hand.
Arm liners
A liner is a soft sleeve worn on the arm inside the socket. It cushions the skin and helps hold the prosthesis on. We also make custom silicone liners.
Össur Iceross® Upper-X Locking
Suits: arm prostheses held on with a pin
A silicone liner made for arm prostheses. It locks into the socket with a pin at the end, and Össur designed the way it holds on to be comfortable and to sit closely against the skin.
Ottobock IntoLiner Acclimate
Suits: below-elbow amputations, with at least 10 cm of arm below the elbow
A fabric liner rather than a silicone one. It lets the skin breathe, draws sweat away and evens out heat and cold, and it is treated against bacteria.
Read more
It can be shortened to the length of your arm, and washed at 30°C.