For years, the existence of "ghost members" in amputees has been a mystery that has attracted the attention of scientists around the world. There was a moment that we thought was a psychological phenomenon fruit of mourning for the lost member . However, over time, it was discovered that the amputated hand card created by measuring the brain activity of patients was very similar to that of people who did not lose this part of their body. In addition, some studies show that the "movement" of the amputated hand generates brain activity in amputee patients.

What would happen if all of this was used to create dentures that move in response to the movement of the amputated limb? This question was asked by a team of French scientists, of the Institute of Intelligent Systems and Robotics, University of Aix-Marseille and the Regional Institute of Physics and retrofitting . The answer was a motion-guided prosthetic movement of the Phantom Member so that patients, as explained in a study recently published in Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology did not find it. have no surgery or prior training .

When the ghost member ceases to be a ghost

About 75% of the amputee has the ability to "move" your ghost member. These movements are caused by contractions developed in the muscles of the strain that were not related to the joints before amputation. The result is similar to that of surgical reconnection performed for the fitting of certain prostheses, but in this case is spontaneous and without surgical intervention .

75% of amputees have the ability to move their ghost limb

This led these French researchers to design algorithms recognizing the muscular activity generated by the movement of the ghost limb and to When they performed tests on two transhumanely amputated patients and, as can be seen in this video (19459018), the results were very encouraging. In none of the cases was the prosthesis placed on the stump, but it was arranged near it . Nevertheless, patients managed to hold and release objects at will simply in a few minutes of familiarization with the device .

This study is very positive for two reasons, mainly. On the one hand, this may involve starting a new type of prosthesis much much easier to use . On many occasions, those who need training end up being desperate by patients, who can become frustrated and give up before they can master it . On the other hand, the results confirm the other scientists who ensured the existence of a neurological explanation of the appearance of ghost members and from a more in-depth study . ] to obtain applications as interesting and useful as those obtained by these French researchers.