Robotic Arm for Stroke

BOSTON (Ivanhoe Broadcast News) -- A stroke is debilitating physically and mentally. Half of patients will experience some type of paralysis. For decades, researchers thought recovery would plateau after the first three to six months. But now, a new medical device is changing the notion of the motion.

It was a day Maggie Fermental would rather forget

"The room was spinning really fast, and then stuff just stopped working," Fermental says. "First my arm, then my leg, then my speech just quit."

At age 32, Fermental suffered a stroke.

"What happens during a stroke is an area of the brain tissue is damaged, and brain cells die," says Joel Stein, M.D., chief medical officer at the Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in Boston.

After standard therapy, Fermental only regained 25 percent of the function in her arm. Then, she heard about a new powered elbow brace that uses a computerized system to detect electrical impulses in muscles. A sensor detects a patient's intended movement, and translates it into motion, helping the weakened muscles move. The patient, not the machine, controls the motion.

 "Through repeated practice, the brain is able to improve its ability to control that activity, and, to some extent, the brain reverses itself," Dr. Stein explains.

Some researchers say the device is analogous to power steering on a car. The patient, like the driver, initiates the movement while the device, like the steering function, assists.

"This has given me back a lot of confidence and the ability to move around in the world, so I can kind of do things for myself," says Fermental.

Three years after her stroke, Fermental has regained more than her confidence -- she also has 75 percent of her arm motion back.

This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, which offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, click on: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.

If you would like more information, please contact:

Maureen Liberty

Myomo, Inc.

(617) 861-4193

[email protected]