Yahoo – AFP, 8 June 2015
The world's first artificial leg capable of simulating the feelings of a real limb and fighting phantom pain will be unveiled by researchers in Vienna on Monday.
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World's
first 'feeling' leg prosthesis offers new hope to amputees
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The world's first artificial leg capable of simulating the feelings of a real limb and fighting phantom pain will be unveiled by researchers in Vienna on Monday.
The
innovation is the result of a two-fold process, developed by Professor Hubert
Egger at the University of Linz in northern Austria.
Surgeons
first rewired remaining foot nerve endings from a patient's stump to healthy
tissue in the thigh, placing them close to the skin surface.
Six sensors
were then fitted to the foot sole of a lightweight prosthesis, and linked to
so-called stimulators inside the shaft where the stump sits.
"It's
like a second lease of life, like being reborn," Austrian amputee Wolfgang
Rangger, told AFP ahead of Monday's media launch.
The former
teacher, who lost his right leg in 2007 after suffering a blood clot caused by
a cerebral stroke, has spent the last six months testing the new prosthesis.
"It
feels like I have a foot again. I no longer slip on ice and I can tell whether
I walk on gravel, concrete, grass or sand. I can even feel small stones,"
he said.
The
54-year-old also runs, cycles and goes climbing. When he moves, the limp is
barely noticeable.
Every time
Rangger takes a step or applies pressure, the small sensor devices send signals
to the brain.
"In a
healthy foot, skin receptors carry out this function but they are obviously
missing here. However, the information conductors -- the nerves -- are still
present, they're just not being stimulated," Egger said.
"The
sensors tell the brain there is a foot and the wearer has the impression that
it rolls off the ground when he walks. All things considered, the procedure is
a very simple one given the results."
This is not
the first time the Austrian scientist has caused a stir with his research.
In 2010, he
presented a mind-controlled prosthetic arm, which the user directed with motor
neurons previously connected to the lost limb.
For the
artificial leg, the principle remains the same except that the process works in
reverse: information is guided from the prothesis to the brain, rather than the
other way around.
No more
morphine
In addition
to increasing balance and safety, the prosthesis provides another remarkable
function: it has helped eradicate the excruciating pain Rangger had experienced
for years following his amputation.
"I was
barely able to walk with a conventional prosthesis, didn't sleep for more than
two hours a night and needed morphine to make it through the day," he
recalled.
But within
days of undergoing the operation last October, the pain vanished.
As Egger
points out, phantom pain occurs because the brain gets increasingly sensitive
as it seeks information about the missing limb.
"Plus
the amputation is often tied to a traumatic experience like an accident or
illness, and the mind keeps reliving these memories," he noted.
The
advantage of the "feeling prosthesis" is that the brain once again
receives real data and can stop its frantic search.
"Rangger
is a very different person now to the one I met in 2012," Egger said.
The two men
were introduced to each other at a support group for amputees.
"It
struck me that he never laughed and he had these dark rings under his eyes. It
was awful."
Importantly,
post-surgery recovery is quick and there are no known health dangers associated
with the intervention, he added.
"The
only risk is that the nerves don't reconnect properly and the feelings fail to
return," he said.
With the
new technology ready, Egger now hopes that small companies will join his
venture and start building the prosthesis to help bring down the market price.
At the
moment, a high-tech foot model costs between 10,000 euros ($11,240) and 30,000
euros.
Egger
believes his latest project could vastly improve quality of life for amputees,
including in developing countries.
"People
with amputations aren't patients in the traditional sense, they aren't sick --
they're just missing a limb," he said.
"By
giving them back mobility, they also regain their independence and are able to
reintegrate into society. That's what I work for."
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