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Punitive Limb Amputation

  • Symposium: Recent Advances in Amputation Surgery and Rehabilitation
  • Published:
Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research®

Abstract

Background

Limb amputation has been carried out through the ages as a punitive method in various parts of the world. This article highlights the historical and societal background associated with the use of punitive limb amputation.

Methods

We performed an extensive electronic search of the pertinent literature augmented with a hand-search of additional sources.

Results

Evidence for punitive amputation is available as early as the court of the Babylonian Code of King Hammurabi (circa 1750 Before the Common Era [BCE]), which imposed punitive limb amputations on slaves who used force against free citizens. Other reports provided evidence that punitive amputation was used as early as the 4th century BCE in ancient Peru. Limb amputation restored law and order during the Roman and Byzantine periods. Amputation as a punitive instrument prevailed in Europe throughout the 17th century. During the Enlightenment, the intellectual movement in Europe approached criminal law from a humanistic perspective, incorporated it into societal practice, and promoted its preventive dimensions. Punitive limb amputation still exists in several Arab and African countries.

Conclusion

Amputation as a punitive or correctional method has its roots in old civilizations. It has been used through the ages in various parts of the world. While it has been abandoned in modern western societies, punitive amputation is still used in several third-world countries.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank Ms. Elena Chatzinikou (official English translator) for her help in the linguistic review of the manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medical Deontology and Ethics, School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Thessalia, Larissa, Greece

    Anna Mavroforou MSc, LLM-LAMB, MBA

  2. Department of Orthopaedics & Musculoskeletal Trauma, School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Thessalia, 13 Ath. Agorogianni St., 41335, Larissa, Greece

    Konstantinos Malizos MD & Theofilos Karachalios MD

  3. Department of General Surgery, School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Thessalia, Larissa, Greece

    Konstantinos Chatzitheofilou MD

  4. Department of Vascular Surgery, School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Thessalia, Larissa, Greece

    Athanasios D. Giannoukas MSc, MD, PhD, FEBVS

Authors
  1. Anna Mavroforou MSc, LLM-LAMB, MBA
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  2. Konstantinos Malizos MD
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  3. Theofilos Karachalios MD
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  4. Konstantinos Chatzitheofilou MD
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  5. Athanasios D. Giannoukas MSc, MD, PhD, FEBVS
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Konstantinos Malizos MD.

Additional information

The authors certify that they, nor any members of their immediate families, have funding or commercial associations (eg, consultancies, stock ownership, equity interest, patent/licensing arrangements, etc) that might pose a conflict of interest in connection with the submitted article.

All ICMJE Conflict of Interest Forms for authors and Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research ® editors and board members are on file with the publication and can be viewed on request.

The opinions expressed are those of the writers, and do not reflect the opinion or policy of CORR ® or the Association of Bone and Joint Surgeons®.

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Mavroforou, A., Malizos, K., Karachalios, T. et al. Punitive Limb Amputation. Clin Orthop Relat Res 472, 3102–3106 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11999-014-3480-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11999-014-3480-6

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