Traveling Internationally with Prosthetic

Lori Vogt has been an upper limb amputee below her elbow since birth and has worn a prosthetic her entire life.

Fortunately, it hasn’t stopped her from traveling the world.

“I would not consider traveling with a prosthetic a challenge,” said Vogt, a travel agent with MickeyTravels LLC in Long Valley, New Jersey. “Lots of people travel with medical conditions and other restrictions that just make you plan a little bit more.”

She admits that carrying suitcases through the airport is probably the only challenge that she faces: “I personally do not need to travel with much, but for longer trips the added weight and bulk of the suitcases brings challenges. With the various restricting rules that the airlines have put in place with lower weight requirements and smaller suitcases, it does make things a little bit more difficult.”

Vogt has to consider how many bags to travel with and how many items she can carry at the same time: “I have two children under six, and luckily my husband is great with carrying a ton of bags. When I travel alone, I travel with one backpack and only one suitcase because that is all I can manage. They have carts by baggage claim, but I can’t 100-percent count on those being there.”

When it comes to getting through security, Vogt’s current prosthetic does not have metal and will not set off any metal detectors.

“Individuals with lower limb prosthetics or individuals with metal will always set-off the metal detectors,” she said. “In the past, I have found it easier to just inform the agents beforehand and they will do a body scan if available, or a wand. Afterwards, they do a very quick explosive scan with a piece of fabric. After the fabric test comes back clean, they wave you on your way.”

READMORE: Tips for Traveling with a Disability or Illness

When her prosthetics did have metal in them, Vogt would arrive earlier at security: “If traveling with others, I have them grab my items off the X-ray belt so it doesn’t sit there. In all, it takes five to 10 minutes. But as long as you remember they are following the security measurements to keep us safe, it’s really not that bad.”

According to the Amputee Coalition, individuals wearing prosthetic devices need to know that security officers will see and touch your prosthetic, but will not ask nor require you to remove it. The coalition suggests that you do not remove it and, if necessary, you have the option of requesting a private screening at any time during the screening of your prosthetic device, cast or support brace.

Vogt has enjoyed traveling internationally to Asia, India, South America and Europe.

“The only concern is if you have metal in the prosthetic, it will set off the alarm,” said Vogt. “Just remember to remain calm. Most likely, someone speaks English and you can explain.”

If you happen to be traveling through a non-English speaking destination, Vogt suggests pointing to the prosthetic as the easiest way to communicate: “I have never encountered a country or time where a doctor’s note is needed as it is pretty obvious visually.”

You may not want to think about it, but anything can go wrong while you’re traveling.

“When I was younger, my family took me swimming in the ocean,” said Vogt. “At that time, my prosthetic was metal and very heavy. I was much younger and, unfortunately, my arm slipped off into the water and it sank to the bottom.”

Vogt and others searched for the prosthetic, but it was lost in the middle of the ocean.

“At the time, shipping was not what it was today and I only had two days left for vacation,” said Vogt. “Due to having my prosthetic all my life, I was embarrassed to go out in public without it. I had a couple of long sleeves and dealt without until I got home.”

READMORE: Accessible Travel Still Not a Reality for All

“They are expensive and take weeks and weeks to be made,” Vogt added. “I plan for the worst case so I always have a backup.”

In her travels, Vogt has found that people in other countries are very accepting of my prosthetic: “They are also very curious, as a lot of countries do not have the resources to get great prosthetics made, but they have been nothing but kind.”

For other guidelines on going through airport security with your prosthetic, click here.