Rehabilitation & Physical Therapy

A robot developed by researchers at the at the Learning Algorithms and Systems Laboratory (LASA) at EPFL (Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland) can react on the spot, grasping flying objects thrown at it with complex shapes and trajectories in less than five hundredths of a second.

Studying how primitive man learned to walk upright, say researchers in the College of Engineering at Oregon State University, Corvallis, could lead to improved prosthetic lower limbs. Their findings outline a specific interaction between the ankle, knee, muscles, and tendons that improve understanding of how...

Using a novel rehabilitation device that converts an individual’s thoughts to electrical impulses to move upper extremities, stroke patients reported improvements in their motor function and ability to perform activities of daily living. A multidisciplinary team at the University of Wisconsin-Madison built the...

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Five young scientists have received First Award Fellowships from the National Space Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI). Through this two-year program, they will conduct biomedical research with the aim of helping to protect astronaut health during long-duration spaceflights. In addition to...

A research team from the National University of Singapore’s (NUS) Faculty of Engineering has created efficient artificial, or “robotic” muscles, which, they say can carry an object 80 times its own weight, and be able to extend to five times its original length when carrying the load—a first in...

In the US, there are millions of sports-related concussions yearly, and a large percentage go unreported or undiagnosed because many high school, college, and professional athletes do not report them. Balance tests are the primary method to detect concussion. However, the current means of...

A Victoria University of Wellington School of Design student, Jake Evill, in New Zealand, created a 3D printed alternative to the traditional plaster cast for fractured limbs. Called the Cortex Cast, his design is more lightweight, breathable, and hygienic than fiberglass or plaster casts currently...

Researchers at the University of Bath, UK, say that a device that can train the brain to turn sounds into images could be used as an affordable and non-invasive alternative treatment for blind and partially-sighted people. The vOICe sensory substitution device uses sounds to build an image in the minds of blind people of...

In the past 13 years, more than 2,000 service members have suffered amputated limbs. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA’s) research with advanced prosthetic limbs controlled by brain interfaces is well documented, but such research is currently limited to quadriplegics....

A body at sea is vulnerable to hypothermia, which often leads to loss of life. Hypothermia is caused by the differences between the core body temperature and the surrounding air and seawater temperatures. The greater the differences between the body core...

The American Orthotic & Prosthetic Association (AOPA) launched its "Coalition to Walk and Run Again," an effort to aid uninsured and under-insured victims of the April 15th Boston Marathon terror attack. The bombing killed 3 people and left more than 200 injured, several of...

A new 3-D motion detection system could help identify baseball pitchers who are at risk for shoulder injuries, according to a new study by scientists at the Loyola University Medical Center, Maywood, IL. The laptop computer-based system can be used right on the field.