The first bionic hand that allows an amputee to feel what they are touching will be transplanted later this year in a pioneering operation that could introduce a new generation of artificial limbs with sensory perception.
The patient is an unnamed man in his 20s living in Rome who lost the lower part of his arm following an accident, said Silvestro Micera of the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland.
The wiring of his new bionic hand will be connected to the patient’s nervous system with the hope that the man will be able to control the movements of the hand as well as receiving touch signals from the hand’s skin sensors.
Dr Micera said that the hand will be attached directly to the patient’s nervous system via electrodes clipped onto two of the arm’s main nerves, the median and the ulnar nerves.
This should allow the man to control the hand by his thoughts, as well as receiving sensory signals to his brain from the hand’s sensors. It will effectively provide a fast, bidirectional flow of information between the man’s nervous system and the prosthetic hand.
“This is real progress, real hope for amputees. It will be the first prosthetic that will provide real-time sensory feedback for grasping,” Dr Micera said.
“It is clear that the more sensory feeling an amputee has, the more likely you will get full acceptance of that limb,” he told the American Association for the Advancement of Science meeting in Boston.
“We could be on the cusp of providing new and more effective clinical solutions to amputees in the next year,” he said.
An earlier, portable model of the hand was temporarily attached to Pierpaolo Petruzziello in 2009, who lost half his arm in a car accident. He was able to move the bionic hand’s fingers, clench them into a fist and hold objects. He said that he could feel the sensation of needles pricked into the hand’s palm.
However, this earlier version of the hand had only two sensory zones whereas the latest prototype will send sensory signals back from all the fingertips, as well as the palm and the wrists to give a near life-like feeling in the limb, Dr Micera said.
“The idea would be that it could deliver two or more sensations. You could have a pinch and receive information from three fingers, or feel movement in the hand and wrist,” Dr Micera said.
“We have refined the interface [connecting the hand to the patient], so we hope to see much more detailed movement and control of the hand,” he told the meeting.
The plan is for the patient to wear the bionic hand for a month to see how he adapts to the artificial limb. If all goes well, a full working model will be ready for testing within two years, Dr Micera said.
One of the unresolved issues is whether patients will be able to tolerate having such a limb attached to them all the time, or whether they would need to remove it periodically to give them a rest.
Another problem is how to conceal the wiring under the patient’s skin to make them less obtrusive. The electrodes of the prototype hand to be fitted later this year will be inserted through the skin rather than underneath it but there are plans under development to place the wiring subcutaneously, said Dr. Micera.
|
Submitted by: Joseph A.
Breathalyzers May Be More Important Than You Thought
This video does a great job in breaking down how in the future, breath analysis can be used to detect disease and prevent more invasive procedures.
This New Clinic is Infusing Seniors With Young Blood
Older people are getting blood transfusions from younger people in order to regain their vitality and fight aging. Find out more about this procedure.
New VR Technology Makes 'Paralyzed For Life' Person Stand!
New successful clinical trial leads to amazing results.
Can You Believe It? This Gun Actually Saves People's Lives
Discover the brand new technique that is allowing burn victims to regrow a new layer of skin in as little as four days!
10 Revolutionary Wheelchairs and Mobility Scooters
Disabled people will soon be as mobile as individuals who are fully able-bodied thanks to fantastic revolutionary new wheelchair and mobility scooter designs.
New in Tech: The Telescopic Contact Lens!
Another science fiction story becoming reality is the bionic contact lens...
9 Women Inventors Who Have Been Overlooked by History
History has overlooked many great women inventors. Here’s your chance to get to know a few of them.
Understanding the Aging Process of Our Body Parts
Find out how every organ and body part in our body changes with age.
The Disappearing Computer: Revolution on a Personal Scale
What happens when we lose the physical large computer all together? This lecture explains what ahead for computers.
10 Incredible Animal-Inspired Robots
Let's meet some incredibly realistic robotic animals.
Fascinating: What is the Deepest Hole Humanity Has Dug?
This video explains how low humanity has dug down so far.
20 Amazingly Simple Inventions That Make Life Easier
Some wonderful inventions can fix some of the most annoying little problems that bug us every single day. Here are 20 of the most inventive ideas I've ever seen that I can't believe no one has invented before.
19 Things to AVOID to Make Your Phone Live Longer
19 common mistakes we all make, that make our phones age quicker.
This Mind-Blowing Talk Explores the Nature of Reality
In this video, cognitive scientist, Donald Hoffman, attempts to answer this mind-blowing question in this incredible TED talk.
Can One Photo Really Tell How Good Your Eyesight Is?
Scientists say that this single photograph can tell you whether you have good vision or not. Who can you see in the image?
These Ancient Inventions Have Got Scientists Stumped!
Here are 12 items from long ago which prove that our ancestors possessed knowledge and skills far more advanced than we once believed them to be.
25 Pics Showing How People in the Past Imagined the Future
Let’s see how the people of the past imagined the future and find out if their fun predictions came true with these 25 vintage pictures
6 Remarkable Yet Overlooked Minds That Shaped Our World
These underappreciated geniuses deserve more recognition.
These Optical Illusions Will Shock Your Mind!
Optical illusions create miscommunication between our eyes and brain making, us see things that are not really there or not see things that are right in front of us. See for yourself.
17 Experiments That Produced Very Bizarre Results...
Take a look at this collection of photos showing how common people performed some fascinating accidental scientific experiments.
Future Technology: Inventions That Will Change Our World
Check out a few amazing futuristic inventions that are about to become mainstream.
Revealed! This Is How Far We Have Sent Crafts into Space!
Ever wondered just how far humans have sent spacecrafts into space? If the answer is yes, then this video is just what you've been looking for.
7 Little-Known Body Parts We Never Knew About
Here's a look at some of the weird and little-known body parts that you didn’t know you had.
Do You Know What Alzheimer's Really Is?
This video will shed light on the different stages of this complex and incredibly destructive disease.
Watch This Man Build a Future Using Trash from the Past
In this video, you will see what this incredible community has been able to accomplish by building homes from recycled materials.
These Archaeological Finds Left the World Mystified
Find out more about the most mysterious discoveries that archaeologists made.
These Photos Show How Dependent We are On Smartphones
Technology has taken over and these funny (but true) photos help to drive this fact home.
You Wouldn't Believe How Far Technology Has Come
Take a look at the advancements of technology in this video. Impressive.
Toilets: The Greatest Medical Advancement in Human History
While toilets make some people laugh, they are actually a deadly serious medical advancement. This video explains what toilets mean to civilization.
Chocolate Exposed! Here's What It Does to Your Brain!
Just what is it that makes chocolate so irresistible to so many people around the world? Find all of the answers in the article.
10 Classic Paradoxes fom Philosophy, Math, and Physics
in every sphere of human knowledge, we’re bound to run into inconsistencies. That’s how fascinating paradoxes like these are born.
The Future is in Our Hands - Next Generation Technology
These young brilliant minds grind hard at finding and creating solution to waste recycling, and the results are promising.
Guide: All About the Gut-Brain Connection in Your Body
it's becoming increasingly clear just how influential our tiny gut microbes are in shaping our mood and even our overall health.
5 Puzzling Mysteries That Science Finally Managed to Solve
These weird occurrences have puzzled humanity for decades, if not centuries. Finally, scientists solved them & the solutions are exciting...
This South African Plant May be the New Cannabis
Is this plant the new cannabis? What will the woolly umbrella plant do for medicine?
Check Out This Radio-Controlled Lego-Powered Submarine
This is the height of creativity! Check out this insanely cool Lego submarine. It actually works!
This Incredible Documentary Takes You Into the Human Body
A beautiful and graphically advanced animation sheds light on the mysteries of the human body.
First US Embryo to be 'Edited'; Rise of Genetic Changes!
Could the first human embryos be genetically modified?
8 Biggest Mysteries Still Surrounding the Human Body
Although modern science has revealed much about the human body, there are some things that still remain unknown. Here are the 8 biggest mysteries about it.
6 Weird and Creepy Medical Tools of the Past
After seeing these weird and creepy medical devices of the past, you’ll be thankful you live in the 21st century. Take a look for yourself.
16 Surprising Things I Never Knew About Sleeping!
Who knew there was so much we don't know about our most popular activity! Here are 16 facts you may not have known about your sleep.
8 Inventions of 2023 That Will Change The Way We Live
This year was a prominent one for ground-breaking innovations that will change the way we live.
The McGurk Effect - Don't Believe Your Eyes!
What we hear can be affected by what we see...
Get a Sense of Scale of Just How Big SpaceX's Rockets Are
SpaceX is achieving incredible things in space, however it's difficult to picture just how big their rockets are. Take a look...
These Experiments Remind Us Water Isn't Just For Drinking
This video will make you stop and think for a second the next time you're having a glass of water as you remember the brightly colored experiments that this video shows us you can do with water
These 11 Brain Facts Are Enough to Boggle Your Mind
When you consider the sheer complexity of the human brain, it's difficult to wrap your head around it. Learn these 11 fascinating facts about the human brain.
STUDY: The Effect of Personality on Our Level of Happiness
Researchers finally know which types of people will always be happier than others.