Fashion and Identity

Customization of Lower Limb Prostheses in the Context of the Unified Health System in São Paulo

Abstract

This article addresses the development and personalization of lower limb prostheses, highlighting their aesthetic characteristics and the associated symbolic value, based on the perception of stakeholders who work in patient care through the Brazilian Uni- fied Health System (SUS) in the city of São Paulo. To this end, the theoretical foundation in- cludes concepts of design and fashion, considering the semantics of the artifacts in question. A brief overview of the evolution of prostheses and the patient's involvement in the process of making and personalizing their prosthesis is presented, analyzing the aesthetic changes promoted by these devices. A qualitative-ethnographic methodology was chosen, in which primary data collection took place through walking interviews or contextual interviews (Fonseca de Campos, 2016 in which participants were interviewed in the environment of the institutes that belong to the University of São Paulo Faculty of Medicine Clinics Hospi- tal (HCFMUSP), Institute of Orthopedics and Traumatology (IOT) and Institute of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (IMREA). For the analysis of primary data, we opted for content analysis carried out through observation, interpretation, and description (Yin, 2016; Serra, 2006), seeking to understand the procedures and internal flows of the institutes visited, the interaction dynamics with users of lower limb prostheses and the perceptions of these us- ers, elucidated through specific questions. In the end, the results highlight how introducing new alternatives for personalizing the prostheses made available by the SUS allows users to incorporate aspects of their identity into these devices.