A Personalized 3D-Printed Hand Prosthesis for Early Intervention in Children With Congenital Below-Elbow Deficiency: User-Centered Design Case Study

The adoption of prosthetic hands by children with congenital upper limb deficiency from a very early age has benefits in terms reducing prosthesis abandonment, improving body image, and mitigating developmental physiological complications that arise the underuse deficit arm. However, current hand prostheses present drawbacks make them not suitable for young children. This study investigates design requirements below-elbow using user-centered (UCD) approach. UCD puts child at center process, parents as mediators between team. was conducted an interdisciplinary team over three years, several prototypes developed different growth stages child. paper presents adopted approach its timeline, iterative throughout study, final prototype focus on child-friendly features. Finally, describes concluded authors’ recommendations implementing intervention.