Biking with a handicap



chrome99

New Member
May 1, 2013
2
0
0
I hope this is the right place to put this. Last year I was diagnosed with bone cancer and ended up loosing my left femur. I still have my left leg, but the entire femur was removed and replaced with an internal prosthesis. The problem now is that my knee cannot bend more than 50 degrees and is very uncomfortable at anything past 30. I understand that normal riding would impossible like this. There is a possibility that with additional surgery I could increase the bending to 90 degrees. Would it be possible to ride with this handicap? Any thoughts or suggestions on possible bikes, modifications, equipment, anything at all that might help me would be appreciated so much.
 
I should also mention that my hip, while significantly better than my knee, does not bend more than 90 degrees. Also my right leg works fine.
 
Can you talk to your doctor about getting a special prosthesis to use for-and-while doing 'athletic' activities?

There are, of course, cycles which are cranked using your hands & arms.

FWIW. I have read that some people crank with only ONE leg, too ...

  • I presume that an easy-rider "peg" is placed on the down tube (or elsewhere) for the foot of the leg which is not doing any work.
 
Originally Posted by chrome99 .

I hope this is the right place to put this.

Last year I was diagnosed with bone cancer and ended up loosing my left femur. I still have my left leg, but the entire femur was removed and replaced with an internal prosthesis. The problem now is that my knee cannot bend more than 50 degrees and is very uncomfortable at anything past 30. I understand that normal riding would impossible like this. There is a possibility that with additional surgery I could increase the bending to 90 degrees. Would it be possible to ride with this handicap? Any thoughts or suggestions on possible bikes, modifications, equipment, anything at all that might help me would be appreciated so much.
It may be possible. I think the easiest path to overcoming your limitations would be a bike that allows you to sit fairly upright (handlebars higher than the saddle) to keep from bending your hip too much (though a properly fitted bike should never take it past 90º). Then, to reduce the amount your knee bends, you would want the shortest practical crank arms you can get, though even with short cranks I don't know that you could keep that knee bend down to 50º or less, certainly not 30º.
 
The first place to start is with your physicians and PT support team.

My experience (torn achilles) and friend's experiences (knee replacements) with orthopedic surgeons , is that the medical team takes time prior to the procedure to probe for current level of activity / sport participation and then outlines the various options for treatment and PT that will return as much functionality as possible. Sounds like you might have had this discussion based on possible follow up procedures, but if not ... much better than a cycling forum. :)

Knee ROM of 50 degrees or less seems low compared with 100+ degrees for full knee replacements. Is there a physical restriction of the prosthetic femur that inhibits knee functionality, or is this an issue of heavy scar tissue and continuing PT that over time will yield more ROM? Maybe a JAS splint to help increase ROM (speaking of painful).

I volunteer with an adaptive sports organization (mostly snow sports), and we are in our second season of expanded non-snow offerings - cycling being one. Hand-cycles are a sure thing to get you out on the road (or trail), but there is no reason to take your legs out of the equation if you don't want to. "Adaptive" is truly the key word around our organization. Working in conjunction with the participant's medical team, our equipment technicians can adapt equipment in amazing ways. I suspect advanced fit techniques (maybe a shortened left crank arm, etc.) might help accommodate your ROM limitations, but those really are the things that should be discussed with your medical team and qualified PT/cycling professionals.

Congratulations on your positive outcome and determination! Wishing you great success as you continue your journey.
 
First off, congratulations on overcoming the effects of cancer! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/icon14.gif

Your current knee range of motion is going to be a limitation. How much of a limitation? You're just going to have to give it a go...and I have faith that you will.

Have you tried a stationary bike yet? How far off surgery are you?

The short crank length or a stationary bike that has an adjustable crank length might even be beneficial to increasing your ROM gradually. They used to make a gym trainer or therapy bike that had slotted crank arms.

As Sitzmark suggested, consult with your PT people! They know your case details better than we do.
 
Would some kind of a recumbent bike modified to your needs help, or would you still have the same limitations regardless of riding position? I have no idea just throwing this out there.
 
My cousin mark also cycling well even he has only one foot. and if u will see then thats will be amazing ....
 
I met with an accident and had a plaster,doctor has strictly warn me for 1 month bed rest.I am missing my cycle I will be bored at home what to do now,the best part is rest from job.

hgv mechanic jobs
 
Originally Posted by alfeng .

Can you talk to your doctor about getting a special prosthesis to use for-and-while doing 'athletic' activities?

There are, of course, cycles which are cranked using your hands & arms.

FWIW. I have read that some people crank with only ONE leg, too ...

  • I presume that an easy-rider "peg" is placed on the down tube (or elsewhere) for the foot of the leg which is not doing any work.
He hasn't had the leg off, he's had a hip joint replacement. Note that the OP says "internal prosthesis". It ain't coming out w/o major surgery.
 
Originally Posted by mark174ace .

Would some kind of a recumbent bike modified to your needs help, or would you still have the same limitations regardless of riding position? I have no idea just throwing this out there.
+1
'Bent riders tend to prefer short cranks anyhow. And a 'bent can allow a wider variety of riding positions. Going for a tadpole trike will remove any worry about wobble when starting off.