While federal authorities are still scouring the city of Boston for evidence and potentially releasing identities of suspects following the marathon bombings that killed three and injured 176, many health specialists are also coming to the aid for victims who lost their limbs.

The bombings lead to the amputation of at least one limb for 14 people, The Boston Globe reported, prompting prostheses experts to administer specialized prosthetics that could not only ease the recovery process but hopefully help victims to continue active lives.

iWalk, a Bedford-based company in Massachusetts, is among the worlds leading pioneers in advanced technology prosthetics. They have previously provided ankle prosthetics, named iWalk BiOM Ankle System, for soldiers wounded in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. The device operates by imitating missing tendons and muscular functions without the added pain compared to traditional prosthetics.

The BiOM can be adjusted to deal with walking on inclines though a smartphone app, demonstrating a new generation of technology that emphasizes suitability as well as relief.

Doctors and health care providers find that immediate steps following amputation require casting and molding to make well-fitted sockets, but the marathon victims would not be ready for this for close to six to 12 months Until then, they would have to fit into elastic sleeves or synthetic limbs.

But the bionic ankle, as it's being dubbed, is not going to be the only battery-powered limb available.

Soon there will be bionic upper limbs and hands. The "Luke" arm, named after the Star Wars hero, was awarded a $18.1 million grant from the government's Defense Advance Research Project Agency (DARPA) and is undergoing Food and Drug Administration trials.

"Luke" Arm's inventor, Dean Kamen, is known for a list of technologies such as the Segway and more recently the Slingshot, which is a device that could decontaminate waters in developing nations and provide freshwater for the masses. Kamen's company is also partnering with next Step Orthotics and Prothetics and Biodesigns, Inc. to continue the bionic arm project.