Physiologic amputation: A case study

Acute limb ischemia is a complication of severe peripheral arterial disease that can be a threatening limb as well as life. Multiple procedures exist today to help revascularize extremities; however, even with the latest technologies, surgical amputation of the limb may still be necessary. Cryoamputation, or physiologic amputation, is a method used to treat patients who are hemodynamically unstable for the operating room and who are in need of urgent amputation owing to arterial ischemia. This procedure is used in the rare instance where not only a persons' limb is threatened, but also their life. This is a case study regarding one patient who presented to the hospital with limb-threatening ischemia who became hemodynamically unstable owing to the rhabdomyolysis associated with the ischemia of his lower extremity. Cryoamputation was used to stabilize the patient and prevent further deterioration, so that he could safely undergo surgical amputation of the limb without an increase in mortality risk. Cryoamputation must be followed by formal surgical amputation when the patient is hemodynamically stabilized. It is not a limb salvaging, procedure but it is a life-saving procedure. This case study demonstrates the usefulness of the procedure and discusses the technique used for cryoamputation.