Ottobock virtual symposium for healthcare professionals.
Advancements in Phantom Limb Sensation and Pain Management.
Join us for an insightful online symposium exploring the latest advancements in understanding and managing phantom limb phenomena, with a focus on upper limb prosthetics.
This event will provide an overview of phantom limb sensation and pain, their impact on upper limb prosthetics for patients after amputations, and treatment modalities for upper limb prosthetic users.
The “Advancements in Phantom Limb Sensation and Pain Management” symposium will also cover the following key topics:
Innovative visualization and documentation of phantom sensations and neuropathic pain: Discover a groundbreaking method that enables precise visualization of anatomically possible and impossible phantom limb positions. This approach maps various pain attributes directly onto a patient’s avatar, allowing for detailed quantitative evaluation. These insights support therapeutic understanding, targeted treatment planning, and ongoing evaluation.
Recent advancements in upper limb prosthetics: Gain valuable insights into the latest prosthetic technologies, including a transhumeral patient test fitting with the new myosmart control — a digital upgrade of the classic myoelectric control system.
Don’t miss this opportunity to stay at the forefront of innovation in phantom limb sensation treatment and upper extremity prosthetic development. Together, we can enhance patient care and continue driving progress in the field.
Virtual Symposium.
Tuesday 6th May 2025, 16.00 – 17.30 CET
16.00 | Welcome and introduction Dipl.-Ing. Merkur Alimusaj University Clinic Heidelberg, Head of Technical Orthopaedics, Department for Orthopaedics, Trauma Surgery and Paraplegia – Heidelberg (Germany) |
16:05 | Overview of Phantom Limb Jamie Vandersea, CPO Director Upper Extremity Prosthetics, Medical Center Orthotics and Prosthetics, Silver Spring, MD (US)
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16:25 | C.A.L.A.- 3D Avatar Visualization and Documentation of Phantom Sensations and Pain Cosima Prahm, PhD MSc BA Head of the Center for Clinical Research, Clinic for Hand, Replantation, and Microsurgery, BG Klinikum Unfallkrankenhaus Berlin (Germany)
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16:45 | Test fitting with new myosmart control Hans-Magnus Holzfuss, CPO Managing Partner Gesundheitszentrum Greifswald GmbH (Germany) |
17:05 | Panel Discussion |
17:30 | Wrap up and Closing |
Registration for this virtual symposium.
After completing the registration process successfully, the link to join the symposium will be promptly sent to the e-mail address provided during registration.
Dipl.-Ing. Merkur Alimusaj
University Clinic Heidelberg, Head of Technical Orthopaedics, Department for Orthopaedics, Trauma Surgery and Paraplegia - Heidelberg (Germany)
University Clinic Heidelberg, Head of Technical Orthopaedics, Department for Orthopaedics, Trauma Surgery and Paraplegia (Germany). Merkur Alimusaj completed an apprenticeship in prosthetics and orthotics in 1999 and worked until 2005 at several P&O clinics. In 2006 he additionally received his degree as an engineer in rehabilitation techniques at the University of Applied Science in Giessen (Hessen, Germany). He worked since 2005 at the Heidelberg Motion Lab and he is guiding since that time several studies in the field of prosthetics and orthotics. He turned out to be the head of the prosthetics and orthotics department at the University Hospital Heidelberg in 2008 with now more than 90 employed P&Os and CPOs. His research interests are movement analysis in orthotics and prosthetics, Influence of assistive devices in daily living and Control mechanisms in prosthetics. Merkur Alimusaj is author and co-author of several national and international scientific publications and (co-)author of several book contributions.
Jamie Vandersea, CPO
Director Upper Extremity Prosthetics, Medical Center Orthotics and Prosthetics, Silver Spring, MD (US)
Clinical Manager, Medical Center Orthotics and Prosthetics, Silver Spring, MD (US)
Overview of Phantom Limb
Jamie Vandersea serves as the Lead upper limb prosthetist for Medical Center Orthotics and Prosthetics. At MCOP, Jamie is focused on providing his patients with advanced upper limb prosthetic care and the latest prosthetic technologies. By acting as the Lead Research Prosthetist role in studies developing technologies in Modular prosthetics and Implantable Myoelectric Sensors, Jamie has been able to actively shape how we utilize prosthetics.
Jamie’s first introduction to the field of orthotics and prosthetics was after completing his certification in Assisting Technology at SUNY Dutchess in Upstate New York. He then advanced to a clinical career when completing his education at New York University, New York City, graduating with a B.S. in Orthotics and Prosthetics in 1990. In the years following, Jamie completed his residency program within The Helen Hayes Hospital located in West Haverstraw, NY.
Jamie has been specializing in complex upper limb prosthetic care for upwards of 30 years. Working within clinics located in both Los Angeles and San Diego, gained a great deal of experience in treating pediatric amputees with various complex conditions. Eventually moving back to the east coast, Jamie took a position working for a company within one of the most prominent U.S. military medical centers in Washington, D.C. Here he specialized in poly-traumatic upper limb rehabilitation – making upper limb prosthetic devices for a variety of amputation levels and uses.
Cosima Prahm, PhD MSc BA
Head of the Center for Clinical Research Clinic for Hand, Replantation, and Microsurgery BG Klinikum Unfallkrankenhaus Berlin (Germany)
Chair for Hand, Replantation, and Microsurgery Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin (Germany)
C.A.L.A.- 3D Avatar Visualization and Documentation of Phantom Sensations and Pain
Cosima Prahm is a clinical neuroscientist with an interdisciplinary background in medical and technological research. She obtained her PhD in Medicine - Clinical Neuroscience from the Medical University of Vienna, in 2019. During her doctoral studies, Cosima served as a research assistant at the Christian Doppler Laboratory for Restoration of Extremity Function and Rehabilitation, now known as the Clinical Laboratory for Bionic Extremity Reconstruction, under the leadership of Prof. Aszmann.
Following her PhD, Cosima pursued her career as a postdoctoral researcher and subsequent head of research at the Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the BG Unfallkrankenhaus Tübingen/University of Tübingen, Germany. Additionally, she gained valuable international experience as a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Tokyo, Japan and the University of Queensland, Australia.
She is currently Head of the Center for Clinical Research at the BG Unfallkrankenhaus Berlin and senior researcher at the Department of Hand-, Replantation- and Microsurgery, Charité University Medicine Berlin, Germany.
Her research focus spans across interdisciplinary clinical projects related to direct patient applications such as extremity reconstruction, peripheral nerves, human machine interfaces, neuroengineering, phantom limb pain and TechNeuroRehabilitation. Based on the latter she founded the working group PlayBionic which generates innovations in the field of virtual rehabilitation and develops software for human-machine-interaction and health related applications to support both patients and clinicians. Resulting projects include applications for myoelectric signal training, mixed reality for phantom pain relief, and visualization of the phantom and body image of amputees.
Hans-Magnus Holzfuss, CPO
Managing Partner Gesundheitszentrum Greifswald GmbH (Germany)
Test fitting with new myosmart control
Hans-Magnus Holzfuss is a certified Prosthetist-Orthotist (CPO) with extensive/specialized expertise in myoelectric upper limb prosthetics. He began his career in 1989 at the Orthopedic Technical Workshop of the University Medical Center Rostock. In 2005, he took on the role of Site Manager for Technical Orthopedics at Gesundheitszentrum Greifswald (Germany). After successfully completing his master’s qualification in Berlin in 2015, he became the Managing Partner of Gesundheitszentrum Greifswald in 2020, where he works in close partnership with the University Medical Center Greifswald together.
Hans-Magnus’ primary areas of expertise spans both upper and lower limb prosthetics, with a particular emphasis on upper limb prosthetics. Since 2003 he has specialized in myoelectric upper limb prosthetics, establishing himself as a recognized expert in this field.
