Touch Bionics, developer of the
world's first commercially available bionic hand, today announced that its
i-LIMB Hand and ProDigits partial hand prostheses are now generally
available and have been successfully fitted to a significant number of
patients across the United States and in Europe.
Touch Bionics' i-LIMB Hand looks and acts like a real human hand and is
the world's first widely available prosthetic device with five individually
powered digits. In another industry first, Touch Bionics' ProDigits product
is adapted for patients who have a partial hand, due either to congenitally
missing fingers or fingers lost through an accident. Partial hand is an
area of prosthetics that has been without suitable powered products in the
past.
The i-LIMB Hand and ProDigits will be formally unveiled later this
month at the 12th World Congress of the International Society for
Prosthetics and Orthotics in Vancouver, Canada. But Touch Bionics'
technology is already changing the lives of patients with its prosthetic
products, working with leading U.S. clinical partners including Advanced
Arm Dynamics, Benchmark Orthotics and Prosthetics, Hanger Prosthetics and
Orthotics, LIVINGSKIN and Scott Sabolich Prosthetics and Research.
Sergeant U.S. Army (ret'd.) Juan Arredondo of Universal City, TX, who
lost his hand in Iraq in 2004 after his patrol vehicle was struck by an
improvised explosive device, is one patient who today is living a different
life after being fitted with the i-LIMB Hand.
"Everyday that I have the hand, it surprises me," said Sgt. Arredondo,
who was with the 2nd Infantry Division, 1/506th Destroyer Company. "Now I
can pick up a Styrofoam cup without crushing it. With my other myoelectric
hand, I would really have to concentrate on how much pressure I was putting
on the cup. The i-LIMB hand does things naturally. I can just grab the cup
like a regular person."
John German, a 40-year old medical salesman and clinical technician
from Altoona, PA, who lost his hand in 1987, was recently fitted with the
i-LIMB Hand. He is excited about the i-LIMB Hand's "extensive, real-world
capabilities," compared to other prostheses he has used over the past 20
years.
"My previous hand was no better than a wireless mechanical hook,
whereas the i-LIMB Hand is a dynamic hand," Mr. German said. "Instead of a
c-shaped pincher, with the i-LIMB hand, I have a full range of grips that
allow me to do everything I want to do with the hand."
Lindsay Block of Oklahoma City, OK, has had a lifetime of experience
with prosthetics. Born missing the lower part of her left arm as the result
of a birth defect, Ms. Block, now 26, has used almost every new generation
of prosthetic technology since being fitted with her first one when only
six months old. She is particularly impressed both by the life-like look of
the i-LIMB and by its extensive range of motion.
"When I'm wearing the i-LIMB Hand, I'm pretty sure that someone who
doesn't know me wouldn't even guess that it wasn't my own hand," she said.
"It's cool how it can adjust to whatever it is grabbing on to. With this
new hand, you don't have to strategize so much about what you do with it
because you realize it's not limited and will adjust depending on what it's
gripping on to."
The technology behind the i-LIMB Hand has come of age after many years
of research and development at Touch Bionics.
"We are delighted to be the company that moves bionic hand technology
from the research and development phase into the real world, and to lead a
generational advance in bionics and patient care," said Touch Bionics CEO
Stuart Mead. "We have always existed to change the lives of patients with
severe injuries and disabilities, and it is thrilling to feel that we are
now able to accomplish that goal."
The i-LIMB Hand offers a unique, highly intuitive control system that
uses a traditional myoelectric signal input to open and close the hand's
life-like fingers. Myoelectric controls utilize the electrical signal
generated by muscles in the remaining portion of a patient's limb. This
signal is picked up by electrodes that sit on the surface of the skin.
Users of existing, basic myoelectric prosthetic hands are able to quickly
adapt to the system and can master the device's new functionality within
minutes. For new patients, the i-LIMB Hand offers a multi-function
prosthetic solution that has never before been available.
"I was amazed by how quickly I could learn to do things with the i-LIMB
Hand, even only an hour after being fitted with the hand," said Donald
McKillop of Kilmarnock, Scotland, one of the first patients to be fitted
with the i-LIMB Hand. "The most important thing is the movement of the
fingers, that's what really makes the difference. It's truly incredible to
see the fingers moving and gripping around objects that I haven't been able
to pick up before. The hand does feel like a real replacement for my
missing hand and it is now very natural for me to pick up all sorts of
objects. It makes everyday activities much easier."
Touch Bionics has developed a custom cosmesis, or covering, for its
products. i-LIMB Skin is a thin layer of semi-transparent material that has
been computer-modeled to accurately wrap to every contour of the hand.
"Cosmesis is a hugely important area in prosthetics, both for
appearance and for durability reasons. It is a vital component of our
solution and brings an added dimension of personal comfort and satisfaction
to our patients," said Mead. "Some patients, especially soldiers, love the
more robotic look of the i-LIMB Skin, but others like their device to blend
anatomically with the rest of their body, and prefer to have a life-like
covering for the i-LIMB Hand and ProDigits."
For those patients who desire a more life-like appearance for the hand,
Touch Bionics has partnered with some leading companies in the development
of cosmesis for its products. ARTech Laboratories and LIVINGSKIN work at
the forefront of high-definition cosmesis - these companies are
collaborating with Touch Bionics to offer patients a life-like solution to
compliment the life-like motions and performance of the hand.
The i-LIMB Hand and ProDigits products are being shipped today and
patients are being fitted at all of the clinics mentioned above in addition
to other US clinics, as well as at Touch Bionics' new state-of-the-art
facility in Livingston, Scotland.
TOUCH BIONICS
touchbionics
Buy Lamisil Without Prescription
Комментариев нет:
Отправить комментарий