How to care for your prosthetic socks.
Everyone should wear clean socks daily to promote good prosthetic hygiene. Prosthetic socks should be put on carefully to avoid wrinkling, which can cause skin abrasions. When your prosthetic socks become worn and packed down they should be replaced. Re-stitching socks will cause skin issues along from the seam for those with sensitive skin.
How Do I Wash Them?
Stump socks need to be washed every day - you may even need several different plys throughout the day if your residual limb changes volume. Some can be machine-washed while others need to be washed by hand. A few tips:
- Wash your socks and shrinkers with specially formulated garment detergent
- Make sure all soap is rinsed out to avoid irritation.
- Do not subject socks to excessive heat.
- To maintain the shape you can place a ball (same size as the sock) in the toe area of the sock.
- Follow each manufacturers specific washing instructions detailed on each product page
The life span of prosthetic socks and stump sheaths vary depending on care, hygiene, and the type of sock. Prosthetic Socks should be washed daily, carefully following the manufacturer's cleaning directions. Prosthetic socks tend to stretch when worn often and will harden slightly due to perspiration build-up. By washing them, it will soften the sock and restore its shape. Prosthetic wearers should have an adequate supply of prosthetic socks on hand to allow proper rotation of clean socks. Wool socks worn and/or washed should be left a few days to "rest". This allows the fibers to settle back to their original shape and regain their natural resiliency.
