# Impact of Improving Footwear Options for Women Veterans with Amputations

> **NIH VA I01** · MINNEAPOLIS VA  MEDICAL CENTER · 2024 · —

## Abstract

Women with amputations receive more frequent prosthetics care, but are less satisfied with the fit,
comfort, and appearance of their prostheses than men. These findings are not surprising as most
prosthesis components are not gender-specific and seem to have been designed for men. Components
like prosthetic feet are made from molds, and it is prohibitively expensive for prosthetics companies to
provide a high number and variety of foot shape options.
Recent surveys indicate that women Veterans with leg amputations are unable to wear many of the
types of footwear they desire to wear due to limitations of the prosthetic foot. Women Veterans who
have greater perceived challenges with how their prosthesis affected footwear options also experienced
significantly more body image concerns and participated less in daily activities.
This project will assess the impact of a new prosthesis system including a modular prosthetic ankle that
can be used interchangeably with several 3D-printed feet. The prosthetic feet are customized to fit a
wide range of footwear, including shoes of different heel heights and widths. To change footwear, the
user simply removes the prosthetic ankle from one foot-shoe combination and connects it to another,
without the need for tools or modifications to the prosthetic alignment. This new prosthesis system
dramatically improves footwear options for persons using leg prostheses, enabling potential to increase
body image and community participation for women Veterans with leg amputations.
In this study, women Veterans with amputations will be recruited from a national sample to test the
modular ankle – 3D printed feet system. Informed consent and baseline measures will be collected
remotely. Women will then travel to the Minneapolis VA to be fitted with the novel prosthesis system
and shoes of their choice. Accommodation to the new prosthesis system will take place over several
days in Minneapolis with close clinical supervision. After returning home, women Veterans with
amputations will be followed remotely for a period of 6-months to track their outcomes. The study will
test the hypotheses that improving footwear options with our novel prosthesis will improve body image
and participation in women Veterans with amputations. Qualitative interviewing and photovoice will also
be conducted throughout the study to understand the benefits and barriers to using this new prosthesis
system.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10799619
- **Project number:** 5I01RX004256-02
- **Recipient organization:** MINNEAPOLIS VA  MEDICAL CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** Andrew H. Hansen
- **Activity code:** I01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** VA
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** —
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2023-04-01 → 2026-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10799619

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10799619, Impact of Improving Footwear Options for Women Veterans with Amputations (5I01RX004256-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10799619. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*