One of the holy grails of medical science is helping people with spinal cord injuries regain their independence. And it’s advanced shockingly quickly in recent years, to the point where paralyzed people can fly fighter jets with their minds. But the goal is bodily autonomy, and for the first time, a paralyzed person has been able to move his own limb, under his own power, just by thinking about it.
Bill Kochevar was injured in a bicycle accident and was paralyzed from the shoulders down eight years ago. Researchers at Case Western developed an interface for Bill consisting of two parts that essentially bypass the spinal column. The first is a brain/computer interface, an implant that allows a computer to read and interpret brainwaves. So, for example, you teach the interface the brainwaves for “move my arm,” it can transfer that command to the second part, the functional electrical stimulation, or FES.
The FES stimulates your nerves to perform certain functions, like opening and closing your fingers. So, Kochevar had his mind mapped, the interface installed, and practiced using it in a simulator to control his limb and teach the interface. Once the whole thing was hooked up, he was able to move his arm almost immediately. He notes there’s a slight delay between command and action, and he has no sense of touch, but otherwise, it’s as if he has his arm back.
This is just the tip of the iceberg with this technology, but it’s significant. It not only establishes that getting around the spinal column is possible, but also that it’s relatively easy to do. There are enormous steps that need to be taken; shrinking the size of this technology, determining how to use it with other limbs and bodily functions, and figuring out how to install it comfortably on people. But now we know it can be done, and that’s a huge step forward.
(via Engadget)