Amputation Statistics
There are 2.1 million people living with limb loss in the USA, and that number is expected to double by 2050. (1)
Among those living with limb loss, the main causes are vascular disease (54%) – including diabetes and peripheral arterial disease – trauma (45%) and cancer (less than 2%). (1)
African Americans are 4 times more likely to have an amputation than White Americans. (4)
The Amputee Coalition estimates that 185,000 people have a amputation each year. This means that 300 to 500 amputations are performed every day. (2)
Lifetime healthcare costs for people with limb loss is $509,275 compared to $361,200 for people without limb loss. (6)
In 2009, hospital costs associated with amputation totaled more than $8.3 billion. (3)
The prevalence of depression and anxiety after limb loss is 37% and 20% respectively experience depression and/or anxiety. (5)
References:
1. Ziegler‐Graham K, MacKenzie EJ, Ephraim PL, Travison TG, Brookmeyer R. Estimating the Prevalence of Limb Loss in the United States: 2005 to 2050. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation2008;89(3):422‐9.
2. Owings M, Kozak LJ, National Center for Health S. Ambulatory and Inpatient Procedures in the United States, 1996. Hyattsville, Md.: U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics; 1998.
3. HCUP Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS). Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP). Rockville, MD: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; 2009.
4. Fisher ES, Goodman DC, Chandra A. Disparities in Health and Health Care among Medicare Beneficiaries: A Brief Report of the Dartmouth Atlas Project. Robert Wood Johnson Foundation2008.