At Lake Prosthetics and Research you will receive individual attention throughout the process.  We want to empower you with the knowledge to make meaningful, well informed decisions about your prosthetic care. 

Choose Your Prosthetist

A successful prosthetic fitting begins with your selection of an experienced caregiver.  The vast majority of practitioners focus solely on lower limb prosthetics and orthotics, seeing at most one  upper-limb case a year.  It is difficult to become effective and skilled at anything done just once  a year. And skill and experience is critical when treating upper-limb cases, which are the most difficult to resolve successfully.

This is why Lake Prosthetics and Research specializes in upper-limb prosthetics. Chris Lake has been treating patients since 1995. He is licensed in the State of Texas, certified by the American Board of Certification and a Fellow of the American Academy of Orthotist and Prosthetists and serves as the Chair of the Upper-Limb Society. He is one of the top experts in this challenging field and is certified and accredited by all the upper-limb component manufacturers, including Touch Bionics, Otto Bock, Motion Control and Liberating Technologies. He’s built his reputation on his creativity, compassion and uncompromising pursuit of excellence. “Good enough” is not acceptable in his practice. He insists on a completely comfortable fit and true function. Chris sees each client as a patient for life. Come in a year later with a desire to take up white-water rafting and you’ll find he’s excited and able to help you fulfill this new dream.

Review Your Options

The first step is a complete patient assessment.  During this assessment, we’ll ask you about your expectations and needs, your level of function before your amputation, your experience with different types of prostheses, examine your residual limb presentation, and discuss your work-related, recreational and personal goals.  This forms the foundation for your individual prosthetic plan. We might recommend several prosthetic option combinations to help you reach your specific goals.  The patient assessment takes approximately 90 minutes depending on the number of questions you may have as well as the complexity of your case.  Careful planning helps us provide good results.

Establish Your Care Team

Lake Prosthetics and Research will help you assemble and coordinate a personalized team.  The team includes the referring physician, psychiatrist/psychologist, case managers, occupational and physical therapists, as well as your support structure at home and work.  A successful prosthetic outcome almost always coordinates and/or utilizes one of these support team members at all times during the process. 

Formulate a Prosthetic Plan

Based on the findings of the assessment and the input of your care team, we will recommend a prosthetic care plan.  Sometimes this prosthetic plan begins with surgical or therapeutic intervention.  Chris Lake is comfortable both advising in the operating room and the therapy room. He believes that working as a team sets the patient up for success.  We then determine the type or types of prosthetic devices needed to achieve your functional goals.  Your course of care is staged in the most efficient and considerate way.   We work with you to define your short term and long term goals - not just for tomorrow, but for years to come.  Your long term goal might be to return to work, but a functional family life may be more important short term.  With formal recommendations and approvals from your physician and funding source, the prosthetic fitting will begin.

Trial and Diagnostic Fittings

Even with all the information from the initial assessment, past history, and a complete and thorough understanding of your expectations, it still may be difficult to determine the best type of prosthetic design for you.  This is why we perform trial and diagnostic fittings with “prototype” prostheses made of transparent plastics and easily modified materials. Your trial runs with these prototype devices can range from four weeks to more than six months. During this prototype stage, we modify the prosthesis many times to enhance your comfort and function.  This ensures that the final prosthesis is custom tailored to your specific needs.

Delivery of Prosthetic Device

After we fine-tune the fit and confirm we’ve addressed all your needs, we transform the prototype into your finished prosthesis, which may include a cosmetic covering. 

Follow-Up and Maintenance

You will receive follow up care, usually every six months, based on the level of amputation and the activities you are involved in.  Regular follow-up and maintenance leads to the highest level of function and least amount of interruptions from breakdown possible. It also allows us to modify your prosthesis as your needs change or you develop new interests.