TY - JOUR
T1 - Six-Month Assessment of a Hand Prosthesis with Intraneural Tactile Feedback
AU - Petrini, Francesco M.
AU - Valle, Giacomo
AU - Strauss, Ivo
AU - Granata, Giuseppe
AU - Di Iorio, Riccardo
AU - D'Anna, Edoardo
AU - Čvančara, Paul
AU - Mueller, Matthias
AU - Carpaneto, Jacopo
AU - Clemente, Francesco
AU - Controzzi, Marco
AU - Bisoni, Lorenzo
AU - Carboni, Caterina
AU - Barbaro, Massimo
AU - Iodice, Francesco
AU - Andreu, David
AU - Hiairrassary, Arthur
AU - Divoux, Jean-Louis
AU - Cipriani, Christian
AU - Guiraud, David
AU - Raffo, Luigi
AU - Fernandez Marquez, Eduardo Marcos
AU - Stieglitz, Thomas
AU - Raspopovic, Stanisa
AU - Rossini, Paolo Maria
AU - Micera, Silvestro
PY - 2019
Y1 - 2019
N2 - Objective: Hand amputation is a highly disabling event, which significantly affects quality of life. An effective hand replacement can be achieved if the user, in addition to motor functions, is provided with the sensations that are naturally perceived while grasping and moving. Intraneural peripheral electrodes have shown promising results toward the restoration of the sense of touch. However, the long-term usability and clinical relevance of intraneural sensory feedback have not yet been clearly demonstrated. Methods: To this aim, we performed a 6-month clinical study with 3 transradial amputees who received implants of transverse intrafascicular multichannel electrodes (TIMEs) in their median and ulnar nerves. After calibration, electrical stimulation was delivered through the TIMEs connected to artificial sensors in the digits of a prosthesis to generate sensory feedback, which was then used by the subjects while performing different grasping tasks. Results: All subjects, notwithstanding their important clinical differences, reported stimulation-induced sensations from the phantom hand for the whole duration of the trial. They also successfully integrated the sensory feedback into their motor control strategies while performing experimental tests simulating tasks of real life (with and without the support of vision). Finally, they reported a decrement of their phantom limb pain and a general improvement in mood state. Interpretation: The promising results achieved with all subjects show the feasibility of the use of intraneural stimulation in clinical settings. ANN NEUROL 2019;85:137–154.
AB - Objective: Hand amputation is a highly disabling event, which significantly affects quality of life. An effective hand replacement can be achieved if the user, in addition to motor functions, is provided with the sensations that are naturally perceived while grasping and moving. Intraneural peripheral electrodes have shown promising results toward the restoration of the sense of touch. However, the long-term usability and clinical relevance of intraneural sensory feedback have not yet been clearly demonstrated. Methods: To this aim, we performed a 6-month clinical study with 3 transradial amputees who received implants of transverse intrafascicular multichannel electrodes (TIMEs) in their median and ulnar nerves. After calibration, electrical stimulation was delivered through the TIMEs connected to artificial sensors in the digits of a prosthesis to generate sensory feedback, which was then used by the subjects while performing different grasping tasks. Results: All subjects, notwithstanding their important clinical differences, reported stimulation-induced sensations from the phantom hand for the whole duration of the trial. They also successfully integrated the sensory feedback into their motor control strategies while performing experimental tests simulating tasks of real life (with and without the support of vision). Finally, they reported a decrement of their phantom limb pain and a general improvement in mood state. Interpretation: The promising results achieved with all subjects show the feasibility of the use of intraneural stimulation in clinical settings. ANN NEUROL 2019;85:137–154.
KW - Neurology
KW - Neurology (clinical)
KW - Neurology
KW - Neurology (clinical)
UR - http://hdl.handle.net/10807/131090
UR - http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(issn)1531-8249
U2 - 10.1002/ana.25384
DO - 10.1002/ana.25384
M3 - Article
SN - 0364-5134
VL - 85
SP - 137
EP - 154
JO - Annals of Neurology
JF - Annals of Neurology
ER -