Impact of Psychosocial intervention on Quality of life in patients with post- traumatic limb amputation/s: a randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Introduction

Trauma results in approximately 1.19 million deaths and 20–50 million disabilities globally each year. With increasing industrialization, road traffic injuries have become a leading cause of Disability Adjusted Life Years and traumatic amputations. These sudden amputations often lead to significant psychological distress. This study aims to assess the effectiveness of psychosocial interventions in enhancing the Quality of Life of post-traumatic amputees.

Material and Methods

This randomized controlled trial enrolled 74 post-traumatic extremity amputees aged over 18 years, who were cognitively coherent, had adequate social support, and no prior psychological illness. Following baseline psychosocial assessment, participants were randomly assigned to two groups: Group A (n = 39) received conventional care, while Group B (n = 35) received both psychosocial intervention and conventional care for seven weeks. Psychosocial outcomes were reassessed in both groups at the eighth week post-intervention.

Results

Quality of life showed significant improvement in both the groups. However, there was no significant difference between the groups. Level of depression, anxiety and stress significantly decreased in both the groups at 8 weeks, but the difference was not significant between the groups. However, body image showed a significant improvement in Group B as compared to Group A (p = 0.023).

Conclusion

Our study did not show any observable positive effects of psychosocial intervention over conventional care on quality of life, depression, stress, or anxiety except on body image. We hypothesize that positive results might be seen in quality of life of amputees if a larger study with longer duration of psychosocial intervention is conducted.