Nerve damage is no joke. Hit the wrong bundle at the wrong time, and you can find parts of your body essentially useless as the brain is unable to communicate with them. So scientists in Vienna had an idea: Why not train a robot to take over, then chop off the useless parts?
Okay, so it’s a little more complicated than that, as you can see in the above video. The team at the Medical University of Vienna found three men who had their brachial plexus, the nerves that connect your brain and your hand, severely injured and could no longer use their hands. First, they had a section of leg muscle and the prosthetic attached to their current arm, “training” the prosthesis to use what nerve signals remained. Once it was fully with the program, they went all Darth Vader on them and chopped off the hand, replacing it with the prosthetic.
It’s the last part that’s the most attention-getting and likely somewhat controversial. It’s true that removing the hand allows doctors to choose where the prosthesis goes and how it’ll fit. But there’s some debate over whether we should chop off the various bits and replace them with robot parts in the medical community. These men are arguably better off, but where should this surgery be used? How severe does the damage have to be? What if somebody just wants a robot hand?
Still, for those who need it, this procedure is very good news. And, of course, this is just the start. Prosthetics will soon have a sense of touch, as well.