2023-10-17 18:45:46
Enough years have passed to ensure that a case of permanent bionic hand implant has been a total success. Unlike removable prostheses, including the most advanced ones that read the patient’s nerve impulses and execute the patient’s mental commands, robotic prostheses that are permanently implanted, fusing with bone, nerve and muscle tissue, face difficult challenges. , such as the danger of infection or the risk of the prosthesis losing connectivity.
The case in question is that of a Swedish woman who lost her right hand in an accident and was implanted some time later with another bionic hand, with an interface connecting directly to bone, muscle and nerve.
The bionic hand implant not only restored manual dexterity to Karin, but also put an end to the intense pain she felt due to the “phantom limb” effect, a phenomenon that is unfortunately very common among people who have suffered limb amputation; Despite lacking that part of her body, pain continues to come to them from it.
In addition to severe chronic pain, Karin had to deal with various conventional prostheses that were uncomfortable and unreliable, so they barely helped her in her daily life. All this changed when she received a bionic hand equipped with innovative technology. This bionic hand is comfortable and allows you to do many more things. The greater integration between the bionic prosthesis and Karin’s residual limb also relieved pain from the phantom limb effect. “For me, this research has meant a lot, as it has given me a better life.”
Karin was the first person with a below-elbow amputation to receive a bionic hand of this kind, with a very high level of integration and that can be used continuously. The fact that Karin has been able to use her prosthesis comfortably and effectively in her daily activities for years demonstrates the viability of this new technology.
The bionic hand intimately connected to the biological arm. (Photo: Ortiz-Catalan et al. CC BY)
This remarkable fusion between machine and human being is the work of the team made up of, among others, Daniele D’Accolti, from the Institute of Biorobotics attached to the Santa Ana Higher School in Pisa, Italy, and Max Ortiz-Catalan, from the Center for Bionics and Pain Research in Sweden, as well as Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden, among other institutions.
On the occasion of the good functioning of the bionic hand after the years that have passed, the team of Ortiz-Catalan and D’Accolti has carried out a study on the integration of the bionic hand, entitled “A highly integrated bionic hand with neural control and feedback for use in daily life“. This study has been published in the academic journal Science Robotics. (Source: NCYT from Amazings)
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