An open medical reference book on a clean white desk beside a below knee prosthetic socket and a pair of reading glasses, photographed at an angle so that no words are readable. No people. Photograph taken in Karachi, Pakistan, in a clean, modern, well lit private prosthetics clinic with white walls, a polished tiled floor and tidy steel and laminate furniture. Any person shown is Pakistani and well dressed, with the face out of frame. Natural daylight, realistic colours, documentary style. No text, no signage, no logos, no watermarks. 4:3 aspect ratio.

The words on your discharge slip and quotation, in plain language.

Artificial leg glossary

Surgeons and prosthetists use a language of their own. If a word on a hospital paper or a quotation is unfamiliar, look here. If it is not here, ask us.

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Written and reviewed by Ummad Shafique Mughal, Consultant Orthotist and Prosthetist. Last reviewed September 2026.

Words families use

Urdu and everyday terms

Masnoi taang: The common Urdu term for an artificial leg. Also heard as masnui tang. In clinical language, a lower limb prosthesis.
Naqli taang: An informal Urdu term for an artificial leg, literally a false leg. It means the same device.
Masnoi aaza: Artificial limbs in general, both arms and legs.
Stump: The part of the limb that remains after amputation. Clinicians also say residual limb. We use stump on this site because it is the word families know.
Artificial leg: The everyday English term for a lower limb prosthesis. Prosthetic leg and artificial limb mean the same.
Prosthetist: The clinician who assesses, designs, fits and aligns artificial limbs. In Pakistan the degree is a BS in prosthetic and orthotic sciences.

On the discharge slip

Amputation levels

A life size anatomical teaching model of a human leg and pelvis on a stand in a clean clinic, with five coloured elastic bands tied around it at the forefoot, ankle, mid shin, knee and mid thigh to mark amputation levels. No people. Photograph taken in Karachi, Pakistan, in a clean, modern, well lit private prosthetics clinic with white walls, a polished tiled floor and tidy steel and laminate furniture. Any person shown is Pakistani and well dressed, with the face out of frame. Natural daylight, realistic colours, documentary style. No text, no signage, no logos, no watermarks. 4:3 aspect ratio. — Bands mark the common levels, from partial foot to above the knee.

Transtibial (BKA): Amputation through the shin, below the knee. Below knee leg.
Transfemoral (AKA): Amputation through the thigh, above the knee. Above knee leg.
Knee disarticulation: Amputation through the knee joint, leaving the whole thigh bone. Through knee leg.
Hip disarticulation: Amputation through the hip joint. Hip level leg.
Hemipelvectomy: Removal of the leg together with part of the pelvis. Fitted in a similar way to hip disarticulation.
Symes: Amputation through the ankle, keeping the heel pad. Symes prosthesis.
Transmetatarsal, Lisfranc, Chopart: Partial foot amputations, from the front third of the foot to all but the heel.
Bilateral: Both sides. Legs for both sides.
Revision: A further operation on the stump, for example to smooth a bone end or improve the soft tissue cover.

On the quotation

Parts of the leg

An above knee artificial leg standing upright on a white bench with its cosmetic cover removed so that the socket, knee joint, pyramid adapters, pylon and foot are each clearly visible as separate parts, plain white background. Product photograph. No people. Photograph taken in Karachi, Pakistan, in a clean, modern, well lit private prosthetics clinic with white walls, a polished tiled floor and tidy steel and laminate furniture. Any person shown is Pakistani and well dressed, with the face out of frame. Natural daylight, realistic colours, documentary style. No text, no signage, no logos, no watermarks. 4:3 aspect ratio. — From the top: socket, knee joint, adapters, pylon, foot.

Socket: The custom made shell the stump sits in. Sockets and liners.
Test socket (check socket): A clear plastic trial socket used to see and correct pressure before the final socket is made.
Liner: A soft silicone or gel sleeve rolled onto the stump to cushion the skin and often to hold the leg on.
Stump sock and ply: A cotton or wool sock worn in the socket. Ply is its thickness, in one, three or five. Socks are added as the stump shrinks.
Shrinker: An elastic sock worn when the leg is off, to control swelling and shape the stump.
Suspension: Whatever holds the leg on: strap, sleeve, pin lock, lanyard, suction or vacuum.
Pin lock (shuttle lock): A pin on the end of the liner that clicks into a lock in the bottom of the socket.
Suction and vacuum: Suspension by removing air between the stump and socket through a one way valve, or with a small pump.
PTB and TSB: Two below knee socket designs. Patellar tendon bearing loads the tendon below the kneecap. Total surface bearing spreads load over the whole stump.
Quadrilateral and ischial containment: Two above knee socket shapes. The second cups the sitting bone for better control.
Pylon: The tube that replaces the shin bone and joins the socket or knee to the foot.
Pyramid adapter: The small four screw connector that joins parts and allows the alignment to be adjusted.
SACH foot: Solid ankle cushion heel. The simplest prosthetic foot. Prosthetic feet.
Multi axis foot: A foot that moves up and down and tilts side to side, for uneven ground.
Energy return foot: A carbon fibre foot that stores energy as it bends and releases it at push off.
Polycentric (four bar) knee: A knee with a linkage that is stable at heel strike and folds compactly. Knee joints.
Hydraulic knee: A knee whose fluid cylinder matches swing speed to walking pace and yields slowly under load.
Microprocessor knee (MPK): A knee with sensors and a small computer that adjusts resistance continuously and resists a stumble.
Rotation adapter (turntable): A unit above the knee that lets the shin turn sideways for floor sitting and getting into a car.
Cosmesis: The shaped foam cover and stocking that give the leg a natural outline.
Modular (endoskeletal): A leg built from a central tube and interchangeable parts, which can be upgraded or realigned.

In the fitting room

Process and walking terms

Casting: Capturing the shape of the stump in plaster or with a scanner. Casting and fitting.
Rectification: Reshaping the plaster or digital model to load tolerant areas and relieve sensitive ones.
Lamination: Building the final socket from layers of fibre soaked in resin over the model.
Alignment: The exact position and angle of socket, knee and foot relative to each other. Done on the bench, standing, then walking.
Donning and doffing: Putting the leg on, and taking it off.
Gait: The manner of walking. Gait training teaches it on a prosthesis.
Gait deviation: A fault in walking, such as leaning, vaulting or swinging the leg outward. It has a cause in the leg, the body or habit.
Stance and swing: The part of a step when the foot is on the ground bearing weight, and the part when it is moving through the air.
Pistoning: Up and down movement of the stump inside the socket, a sign of poor suspension or a loose fit.
End bearing: Taking weight through the end of the stump, possible at Symes and through knee levels.
Contracture: A joint that has stiffened in a bent position from shortened muscles. It must be stretched before a leg can be aligned.
Volume: The size of the stump, which changes through the day and over months.
Activity level: A description of how much and how variably a person walks, from indoor transfers to sport. Parts are chosen to match it.

Sensation and skin

Terms for what you may feel or see

Phantom sensation: Feeling the missing limb. Nearly universal and usually harmless.
Phantom pain: Painful sensations felt in the missing limb. Treatable. Tell your doctor.
Neuroma: A tender lump where a cut nerve has healed. The socket is relieved over it. Persistent cases need a doctor.
Desensitisation: Daily massage, tapping and rubbing that teach a tender stump to accept touch and pressure.
Bony overgrowth: In children, bone at the stump end growing faster than the skin over it. A matter for the surgeon.
Folliculitis: Infected hair roots on the stump, seen as pimples. Worse with sweat and shaving.
Verrucous hyperplasia: Dark, thick, warty skin at the stump end, caused by the end not being in contact with the socket. Corrected by changing the socket.

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