Author(s)

Nana Theophile Chunteng^1*, Ngo-Yamben Marie-Ange², Bombah F. Mertens³, Wamba Y. Jeazet¹, Andrew Eyoh Edjua⁴, Ekani Boukar Mahamat¹, Muluem Kennedy², Manga Alex², Assob Clement³

¹Department of Surgery, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Buea, Buea, Cameroon.
²Department of Surgery and Specialties, Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Yaoundé 1, Yaoundé, Cameroon.
³Department of Surgery and Specialties, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Douala, Douala, Cameroon.
⁴Department of Journalism and Mass Communication, Faculty of Social and Management Sciences, University of Buea, Buea, Cameroon.

Background: Limb amputation is considered the last resort when the limb is no longer salvageable or when the limb is dead or dying, viable but nonfunctional or endangering the patient’s life. It is associated with profound economic, social, and psychological effects on the patients. The aim of this study is to evaluate the quality of life of major limb amputees in a rural setting in western Cameroon. Methods: This was a cross-sectional descriptive and analytical study carried out at the BATSENGLA-DSCHANG community in the West Region of Cameroon. Participants were interviewed and data collected using a pre-defined accredited questionnaire of the WHOQOL-BREF to assess the quality of life. Results: There were 63 participants, and a majority (60.32%) reported trauma as the cause of amputation. Participants with prostheses had a better quality of life. Conclusion: The age range of the study participants was 18 to 85 years with a mean of 46.73 ± 18.31 years. The majority were males (74.6%). Most of them (41.27%) had attained at least a secondary level of education, a majority (80.95%) were unemployed and more than half (55.56%) have less than the guaranteed inter-professional minimum wage. Major limb amputations were mostly due to traumatic causes (72%) and involved the lower limbs. Only a few (12.70%) used prostheses. Almost all of them (90.48%) had symptoms consistent with a phantom limb. The quality of life after major limb amputation in this study was generally fair according to the WHO quality of life tool.

Amputation, Limbs, Phantom Limb, Prosthesis, Quality of Life

Theophile Chunteng, N. , Marie-Ange, N. , Mertens, B. , Y. Jeazet, W. , Eyoh Edjua, A. , Boukar Mahamat, E. , Kennedy, M. , Alex, M. and Clement, A. (2022) Quality of Life Following Major Limb Amputations in a Rural Community in Cameroon. Open Journal of Orthopedics, 12, 97-112. doi: 10.4236/ojo.2022.123011.