Having opened its doors in early 2022, the University of Virginia (UVA) Orthopedics Center reflects the vision of Dr. Bobby Chhabra. Guiding a dedicated team, Dr. Chhabra successfully oversaw completion of the UVA Orthopedics Center as a comprehensive facility that provides care involving different orthopedic and musculoskeletal modalities, including those that require prosthetics and orthotics.

There are two basic types of arm prosthetics: transhumeral and transradial. Transradial is an artificial arm that attaches below the elbow. It can either be a passive or active device, with the latter having two basic forms.

The myoelectric transradial implant has sensors that detect upper arm muscle movements and enable movements such as closing and opening the hand. The cable-operated prosthetic device features a harness connected to the affected shoulder and the opposite arm, allowing manual control of the affected lower arm.

A passive transradial prosthetic is cosmetic and gives the appearance of a real arm, without having any practical function for helping grasp or manipulate objects.

A transhumeral prosthesis attaches between the shoulder and elbow and is more complex than its transradial counterpart, as it must take the part of the missing elbow. With both passive and active types available, today’s transhumeral prostheses typically use a combination of myoelectric sensors and cables to enable the natural movement of the artificial limb.