Bilateral Transfemoral Amputation in a 45 Day Old Secondary Infant to Traditional Treatment in a Developing Country

Abstract

Lower limb amputations are well known with various etiologies. In contrast, bilateral variability secondary to traditional treatment, especially in infants, has received little attention in the literature. The WHO estimates that 80% of rural populations living in developing countries rely on Traditional Medicine for their health needs. We report the observation of a bilateral transfemoral amputation in a 45-day-old infant initially treated by a traditherapeute for swelling of both thighs. The treatment consisted of bilateral restraint with traditional splints, which developed into ischaemic gangrene of both lower limbs during 28 days of restraint, which led to a consultation at the Gabriel Touré University Hospital in Bamako. Faced with this dreadful situation, an amputation was immediately carried out to save the life of the innocent infant. The traditional treatment, despite the damage it causes, is practised everywhere in Africa. The authors plead for information and sensitisation of the population on the danger of this practice. They recommend to the public authorities and to national and international institutions working for the well-being of children, the urgent need to put in place a regulation of these anarchic and co-pilot practices which are a great source of handicaps in our population and moreover among children.