Our memories often seem ephemeral, coming and going without any obvious reasons. Researchers at UCLA seem to have come up with a way to bring some memories back that would probably otherwise have gone missing forever. The team relied on transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), a technology that can direct low energy electricity into specific (Read more...)
Tag: Rehab
Electric Brain Stimulation Shown to Improve Memory Function
Our memories often seem ephemeral, coming and going without any obvious reasons. Researchers at UCLA seem to have come up with a way to bring some memories back that would probably otherwise have gone missing forever. The team relied on transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), a technology that can direct low energy electricity into specific (Read more...)
Octopus-Inspired Wearable Biosensor Sticks to Wet and Dry Skin
Researchers from Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) in South Korea have developed a new waterproof, wearable biosensor that can stick to the skin in a unique way. Their work, recently published in ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces, demonstrates the biosensor adheres to the skin in wet and dry conditions and can monitor [ (Read more...)
Sensory Substitution Improves Speech Understanding in Hearing Impaired
Our brains are incredibly adept at adjusting to new challenges, a general concept known as neuroplasticity. Some blind people are known to use echolocation, and now there’s a proof of concept for a similar idea for those that can’t hear well. A group of Israeli and Polish scientists have developed a “sensory substitution device,&r (Read more...)
Sensory Substitution Improves Speech Understanding in Hearing Impaired
Our brains are incredibly adept at adjusting to new challenges, a general concept known as neuroplasticity. Some blind people are known to use echolocation, and now there’s a proof of concept for a similar idea for those that can’t hear well. A group of Israeli and Polish scientists have developed a “sensory substitution device,&r (Read more...)
Study of People with Extra Fingers Points to New Approaches for Development of Prosthetic Devices
Kids with extra fingers on their hands usually have them removed soon after birth, but some get to keep them into adulthood. This condition, known as polydactyly, is usually looked upon as a disability that has to be studied and addressed. Researchers at the University of Freiburg in Germany, Imperial College London, and the Université [&hel (Read more...)
ReWalk Exo-Suit Gets Green Light in U.S., Europe to Aid Stroke Recovery
ReWalk Robotics, a company with offices in Marlborough, Massachusetts and Yokneam Ilit, Israel, won FDA approval and a CE mark for its ReStore Exo-Suit, clearing the device for sale in the United States and EU countries. The ReStore Exo-Suit had its beginnings at Harvard’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering. It is made (Read more...)
Patches Made of Heart Tissue Going to Clinical Trials
Stem cell therapies to heal damaged hearts have proven to be lacking so far, probably because simply injecting new cells into afflicted regions isn’t enough. Researchers from Imperial College London have now created patches made of cardiac tissue to sew over damaged areas of the heart. These patches, which can beat on their own to […]
Tripod Prosthetic Foot for More Stability on Rough Terrain
Researchers at Stanford have developed an unusual tripod-like prosthetic foot equipped with sensors to monitor movement and the surrounding environment. The device provides more stability for users when walking on rough terrain. The research team designed the prototype device using a prosthetic emulation system that allowed them to rapidly modify a (Read more...)
Smart Glove for Prostheses Identifies Objects in Hand
One thing that prosthetic device users hope for is to gain the ability to feel what they’re touching with their hands. There have been some developments in this space (see flashbacks below), but they’re still relatively rudimentary, not very sensitive, and not very good at helping users to identify what it is that they’re touching (Read more...)
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Improves Working Memory
Researchers from Duke University School of Medicine have found that magnetic brain stimulation can help improve working memory. They studied repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), showing that it improved memory task performance in all ages of adults. Given that individuals with Alzheimer’s will more than double by 2050, rTMS ma (Read more...)
NightWare Gets FDA Breakthrough Status for App to Stop Nightmares of PTSD Sufferers
Nightmares are a regular part of life for many people that suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). They can be very hard to control, since dreams seem to have a life of their own and arise in our sleep whether we want them to or not. NightWare, a company based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, just won […]
EEG May be Used to Diagnose, Assess Severity of Parkinson’s Disease
Parkinson’s disease can be hard to diagnose in its early stages, and monitoring its progression is just as difficult. Current methods are mostly subjective, with physicians visually assessing patients during a variety of tasks. Having access to more objective tools may help doctors establish diagnoses fast, guide the type of therapies that ar (Read more...)
StimGuide Navigation System for Horizon Transcranial Magnetic Stimulator
Magstim, a company Wales, UK firm that just won FDA clearance for a 3 minute magnetic stimulation protocol for major depression, is releasing a new navigation system for the Horizon transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) platform. The StimGuide was developed specifically for use by clinicians, as opposed to researchers, to help deliver consistent (Read more...)
Brain Controlled-Hearing Aid Separates Voices in a Crowd
When we are at a party and talking to someone, our brain is able to identify a single speaker’s voice and focus our hearing on it, helping us to listen more closely and ignore the other voices nearby. For the millions of people with hearing impairment who use hearing aids, they often lose this ability, […]
Magstim FDA Cleared for 3 Minute Magnetic Stimulation Protocol for Major Depression
The FDA has cleared Magstim, a company based in Wales, to introduce its intermittent Theta Burst Stimulation (iTBS) as a treatment for Major Depressive Disorder. The therapy is available on the company’s Horizon transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) systems and only takes about three minutes per session. Previously, so-called repetitive tra (Read more...)
Rewellio Offers a New Approach to Utilizing EMG-Biofeedback in Stroke Rehab: Interview with Rewellio’s CEO
Rewellio, an Austrian software company, is trying to revolutionize stroke rehabilitation by building an app, which integrates with readily available consumer electronic devices such as tablets and virtual reality headsets, to make stroke rehabilitation more engaging and accessible. The company recently launched the first version of its app, which f (Read more...)
Smart Suitcase and App Combo Help Blind People Get Around Pittsburgh International
Getting around airports can be challenging for people with good vision, let alone for those that can’t see. Now engineers at Carnegie Mellon University have partnered with Pittsburgh International Airport to develop a smart system that helps blind people safely get from place to place. A smart suitcase, outfitted with a camera, is able to [&h (Read more...)
Focused Ultrasound, Guided by MRI, to Treat Alzheimer’s
Alzheimer’s is related to the buildup of amyloid plaques in the brain, so any serious attempt at dislodging these plaques may help reverse the progression of the disease. The perennial problem with delivering drug therapies to treat brain conditions is the blood-brain barrier that prevents most molecules from penetrating through its defenses. (Read more...)
Microsoft and VA Rolling Out Xbox’s with Adaptive Controllers at Rehab Centers
If you’ve been stuck recovering in a hospital for a long period of time, you may know how delightful video games are for killing time. Injured veterans, usually people that don’t enjoy being stuck in one place and like exciting challenges, often don’t get to benefit from video games because of the disabilities that got […]