Specialists of the Motorika company on the basis of the medical center of the Far Eastern Federal University (FEFU), together with colleagues from Skoltech, are developing a sensitive leg prosthesis, Izvestia learned.
In the course of development, electrodes were implanted into the patient’s stump and spinal cord, through which signals from sensors installed on an artificial analogue of the foot were transmitted to the human nervous system.
“Our development solves two key problems of people with amputations at once: it stops phantom pains that are difficult to remove pharmacologically, and also returns lost sensations,” said Yury Matvienko, head of invasive research at Motoriki.
He added that the team’s hypothesis is that sensing prosthetic legs will save a person from excessive effort when walking. This will allow further development of a controlled bionic foot, protecting the back from damage and asymmetric loading.
It will also increase psychological comfort, since the prosthetic leg is no longer perceived as a means of rehabilitation or a gadget, and is felt as one’s own limb.
Read more in the exclusive Izvestia article:
Feeling in reality: sensitive prostheses will cure phantom pains
