A paralyzed man in Cleveland fed himself mashed potatoes for the first time in eight years, aided by a computer-brain interface that reads his thoughts and sends signals to move muscles in his arm, U.S. researchers said on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The research, published in the journal Lancet, is the latest from BrainGate, a consortium of researchers testing brain-computer interface technology designed to give paralyzed individuals more mobility. Prior tests of the technology allowed paralyzed people to move a robotic arm or a cursor on a keyboard just by using their thoughts.<\/p>\n
The team at Case Western Reserve University and the Cleveland Functional Electrical Stimulation Center used the brain-computer interface and an electrical stimulation system that allowed Bill Kochevar, 56, to control his own arm.<\/p>\n
To achieve this, the team implanted two sensors, each about the size of a baby aspirin, loaded with 96 electrodes designed to pick up nerve activity in the movement centers of the brain.<\/p>\n
The sensors record brain signals created when Kochevar imagines moving his arm, and relay them to a computer. The computer sends the signals to the electrical stimulation system, which directs impulses through about 30 wires implanted in muscles in Kochevar\u2019s arm and hand to produce specific movements.<\/p>\n
Kochevar, who was paralyzed below his shoulders in a cycling accident eight years ago, first learned to use the system to move a virtual reality arm on a computer screen. He accomplished that on the first day he tried it, said Case Western\u2019s Robert Kirsch, the study\u2019s senior author.<\/p>\n
For the movement phase of the trial, Kochevar had to go through 45 weeks of rehabilitation to restore muscle tone that had atrophied over the years of inactivity.<\/p>\n
Using the brain interface system, he can now move each joint in his right arm individually, just by thinking about it. To accomplish tasks like drinking through a straw, or scratching his face with a dry sponge, Kochevar is aided by an arm support, a device he also controls with his thoughts.<\/p>\n
Kochevar said the chance to do simple things for himself has been \u201cbetter than I thought it would be.\u201d<\/p>\n
For the moment, the system is experimental only, but the study shows such a system is feasible, Kirsch said.<\/p>\n
BrainGate is funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Veterans Affairs.\u2014Reuters<\/p>\n
Image: BrainGate<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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