Prostheses vs Orthoses
I’ve heard about prosthetics before. Isn’t that things like artificial legs and arms?
Very close! Technically, prosthetics is the field of study where artificial limbs and other body parts are made. A prosthesis refers to the artificial body part itself. And, if you’re talking about more than one prosthesis, they are called prostheses. Try saying those words together five times fast! Even though these are more like the “correct” definitions, it is very common for people to say prosthetic when they are actually talking about a prosthesis. Language evolves all the time and words change meaning constantly, so there’s nothing wrong with it as long as everyone is on the same page.
Now. Have you heard of orthoses or orthotics before?
Mmm… No. Can’t say that I have.
So, where a prothesis is a device that replaces a body part, an orthosis is a device that simply supports a body part. Think of things like splints, braces, casts, and other supports. The good news is the endings of these ortho- words has the same setup as the prosthe- words. This means that orthotics is the field of study, orthosis is a single support device, and orthoses is multiple support devices. Also, just like prosthetic, orthotic is very commonly used interchangeably with orthosis. The bad news is that all of these words can start to lose meaning if you say them too many times.
"A better fit for prosthetics" by SandiaLabs is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
That’s it! That’s my quick and simple speech of the day!
If you have any lingering questions, be sure to let me know in the comments below! In the meantime, check out Footless Jo on YouTube. She is very open about her journey as someone who has undergone surgical amputation and has tons of videos that shine a little light on what daily life is like for someone living with a prosthesis.
