Services Provided

Prosthetics

A prosthesis is a functional replacement for an amputated or congenitally malformed or missing limb. Progressive O&P fits and fabricates custom-made upper and lower-limb prosthetic devices, called prostheses. A prosthesis is prescribed for the patient by their physician, usually a physiatrist or vascular surgeon, and fitted to the patient by a prosthetist.

Prostheses are most commonly fabricated from a plaster cast of the patient’s affected limb. Most prostheses are made of lightweight thermoplastics but can also be made of other high-tech, ‘space-age’ materials such as carbon fiber, titanium, and Kevlar. Many prostheses utilize microprocessors and sophisticated electronics to perform their ambulatory functions.

At Progressive O&P, Inc., our mission is to provide our prosthetic clients with lightweight, comfortable prostheses which enable them to regain the maximum amount of function and independence possible.

Why do people need prosthetic care?

While there are many different reasons a person may require the use of a prosthesis, some of the most common diagnoses include:

Complete Upper & Lower Extremity Prosthetic Services: Lower Extremity Prosthetics

Upper Extremity Prosthetics

The proper tool for the job:
The Progressive O&P difference

At Progressive O&P, we don’t use computers to do jobs that are better done by hand. Many prosthetic facilities boast about how their computers and scanners allow them to avoid messy and time-consuming casting procedures. While a computer may be able to take a quick visual scan of an amputee’s limb, only a hand casting by a highly skilled prosthetist gives the practitioner and laboratory the information we need to fabricate the best prosthesis for you. Sure, it’s messy, and it takes more time… but it’s the best way to do the job, and that’s how we take care of our patients.

Our commitment to our patients does not include taking shortcuts. Think about it… When you go to a fine restaurant, robots and computers don’t cook your food; people do. Why would you want to have less human interaction when entrusting someone to make your prosthesis? Advanced Prosthetic Technologies Microprocessors and sophisticated programming play a key role in the lives of active amputees today, but none of these technologies can replace a clinically insightful, experienced ABC-Certified Orthotist or Prosthetist.

The C-Leg™ by Otto Bock

The C-Leg™ by Otto Bock is a microprocessor-controlled prosthetic knee and shin system that utilizes force-sensing technology to provide the transfemoral (above-knee) amputee with the utmost safety and security during stance phase and unparalleled swing phase responsiveness. C-Leg™ users often report that they can walk farther, longer, and with less conscious effort with their C-Leg™-equipped prosthesis than with other mechanical prostheses. Its remarkable programming even permits the amputee to walk step-over-step on ramps, inclines, and even stairs.

Progressive O&P’s highly skilled prosthetists are all trained and certified to fit the C-Leg™ and other advanced technologies, including the Rheo™ microprocessor knee, the Proprio™ microprocessor foot/ankle system, and vacuum-assisted socket technologies such as the Otto Bock Harmony™ and E-Pulse™ systems, as well as the Ohio Willow Wood LimbLogic™ system.

Myoelectric Prosthesis Specialists

Myoelectric prostheses utilize sophisticated sensors that ‘read’ the electrical signals in an amputee’s muscles and use these signals to control various functions of an upper-limb prosthesis. Progressive O&P’s prosthetists have extensive experience with myoelectric prostheses for all levels of upper-limb amputees. From the Utah Arm™ and Dynamic Elbow™ to the SensorHand Speed™, to the new I-Limb™ myoelectric hand, many types of upper-limb amputees can benefit from this amazing prosthetic technology.

What if my insurance company says no?

Progressive O&P is prepared to fight for your right to be fitted with the most appropriate prosthesis for your particular clinical and functional needs. For many patients, the most appropriate prosthesis includes highly advanced microprocessor-controlled components such as the C-Leg™ knee-shin system described above. However, the cost of these advanced technologies has led to many insurers simply denying all requests for these types of prostheses without concern for the best interest of their members. Progressive O&P’s Insurance Appeals Team will tirelessly fight for you and your right to be fitted with the right prosthesis for you, including appealing adverse decisions from your insurance carrier.

Orthotics

Orthotic devices, or orthoses, are used to stabilize, correct, or restore function to an impaired limb or joint of the body. Progressive O&P fits and fabricates custom-made upper limb, lower limb and spinal orthotic devices. An orthosis is prescribed for the patient by their physician and may be used on a temporary or permanent basis, depending upon the patient’s diagnosis.

Orthoses are most commonly fabricated from a plaster cast of the patient’s affected limb. Most orthoses are made of lightweight thermoplastics but can also be made of other high-tech, ‘space-age’ materials such as carbon fiber, titanium, and Kevlar. Some orthoses utilize microprocessors and sophisticated electronics to perform their rehabilitory functions. At Progressive O&P, our mission is to provide our orthotic clients with lightweight, comfortable orthotic braces which enable them to regain the maximum amount of function and independence possible.

Why do people need orthotic care?

While there are many different reasons a person may require the use of an orthosis, some of the most common reasons include:

Otto Bock SensorWalk™

Progressive O&P is proud to be one of the first facilities in the United States to fit the Otto Bock SensorWalk™ microprocessor-controlled orthotic knee joint system. The SensorWalk™, like the prosthetic C-Leg™, utilizes microprocessor technology to determine when the knee joint of the orthosis must be stable (to support the patient’s weight) and when to permit the knee joint to flex easily (such as when swinging the leg through during walking).

 

WalkAide™

Progressive O&P’s orthotists are trained and certified to fit the WalkAide™ functional electric stimulation drop foot system. The WalkAide™ system uses functional electrical stimulation (FES) of the common peroneal nerve to enable patients with “drop foot” to dorsiflex their foot and walk without a brace. Users of the WalkAide™ are typically people who have lost the ability lift their foot due to central nervous system damage caused by stroke, spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury, and multiple sclerosis.

Complete Upper & Lower Extremity and Spinal Orthotics Services

Progressive O&P’s Insurance Appeals Team

At Progressive O&P, we pride ourselves on providing our patients with the highest quality and most compassionate orthotic and prosthetic care and products. We focus on the patient, not simply the amputation, to design a prosthetic device that will restore as much function and allow the patient to achieve as much independence as possible. Sometimes, the most appropriate prosthetic design for a particular patient requires a specialized component (such as a computerized knee) to provide the utmost in safety and stability while also providing the patient with more mobility and independence than ever before.

Problem: the insurance denies the prosthetist’s request for approval to provide you with the high-tech prosthesis you need.

Many insurance companies routinely deny all requests for high-tech advanced prosthetic devices or components, such as the Otto Bock C-Leg™ microprocessor hydraulic knee-shin system or the Össur Rheo™ microprocessor magnetorheologic knee, in the hopes that the patient will simply take “no” for an answer and agree to be fitted with cheaper, less-than-optimal prosthetic components. This is done simply to save the insurance company money, not to look out for the patient’s best interests and needs.

Progressive O&P understands that not all insurers comprehend the magnitude of being an amputee or an orthosis wearer and how much the right prosthetic componentry can make a difference in our patients’ lives. To that end, our highly trained insurance Appeals Team vigorously fights all attempts by insurers to deny needed products or services to our patients.

Progressive O&P’s Appeals Team specializes in taking on these insurance giants and will be your advocate when your insurance attempts to deny you a product or service that you need. Our mission is to provide our patients with the highest quality prosthetic and orthotic devices to help restore as much of your independence as possible, not to take “no” for an answer from some insurer bent on cutting costs instead of serving their members.

At Progressive O&P, your insurance appeal will be handled by an ABC-certified prosthetist who is intimately familiar with both your situation and the function of the device that is denied. We’ve read the research; we know when an advanced-technology prosthesis is the only solution that will help a patient achieve their goals. Our Appeals Team knows how to fight for your right to be fitted with the right prosthesis/orthosis for you, and we won’t let cost-cutting insurance companies push you around. If you need a particular orthosis, prosthesis or prosthetic component, and it could make your life better or more independent, then we will fight for you to be provided with it!

Please don’t hesitate to call us at 516-338-8585 and schedule an appointment to consult with a member of our Appeals Team if you have found that your existing provider is either unwilling or unable to fight for your rights against your insurance’s denials, or are concerned that your insurance will deny you products and services that you need.