The human body maintains balance using somatosensory, visual, and vestibular inputs. Individuals with lower limb amputations experience balance deficits due to reduced feedback, leading to a reorganization of their balance control system. We applied controlled perturbations to transtibial (TTA) and transfemoral amputees (TFA), and able-bodied controls, while an inverted pendulum model was used to analyze balance control properties. TFA participants exhibited frequency-specific phase deficits without vision and markedly reduced proprioceptive weights despite preserved gain magnitudes, even during eyes-open conditions. These results suggest distinct postural control adaptations in amputees compared to controls.
Krauskopf et al. (Sat,) studied this question.