The LEAP study enrolled 601 civilians with severe limb-threatening lower extremity trauma to compare long-term functional outcomes between amputation and limb salvage, and to identify what patient and environmental factors drive recovery at 2- and 7-year follow-up.
When managing severe lower extremity trauma, the operation is only part of the equation — screen early (at ~3 months) for pain burden, depression, anxiety, and low self-efficacy, because these psychosocial factors predict 7-year disability more reliably than whether you amputated or reconstructed.
A patient with high pain scores and low self-efficacy at their first postacute visit is your highest-risk patient regardless of what happened in the OR.
The LEAP study enrolled 601 civilians with severe limb-threatening lower extremity trauma to compare long-term functional outcomes between amputation and limb salvage, and to identify what patient and environmental factors drive recovery at 2- and 7-year follow-up.
When managing severe lower extremity trauma, the operation is only part of the equation — screen early (at ~3 months) for pain burden, depression, anxiety, and low self-efficacy, because these psychosocial factors predict 7-year disability more reliably than whether you amputated or reconstructed.
A patient with high pain scores and low self-efficacy at their first postacute visit is your highest-risk patient regardless of what happened in the OR.