Ground breaking bionic hand fitted in the UK

By Admin
The revolutionary lifelike bionic limb was fitted with engineer, Christopher Taylor after he lost his hand in a jet skiing accident. The bionic hand, n...

The revolutionary lifelike bionic limb was fitted with engineer, Christopher Taylor after he lost his hand in a jet skiing accident. The bionic hand, named the Michelangelo cost £47,000 and is controlled by muscle signals from Taylor’s brain. The thumb and forefingers of the hand are able to move independently of one another. The hand is said to be vastly better than other prosthetics currently available on the market.

Geoff Harding, Prosthetics Business Manager at Ottobock Healthcare, which developed the hand, said, “This is a hugely exciting medical innovation and we're delighted that Christopher has found the Michelangelo so comfortable and easy to use.

“We hope that Christopher's story shows other amputees that real, effective solutions are available and look forward to watching his progress with Michelangelo.”

The limb was fitted by Dorset Orthopaedic Director of Clinical Services David Hills, who said the company was looking for other patients to be fitted with the bionic hand.

The Michelangelo - named after the Italian artist's painting of God and Adam touching hands is made of soft and hard components, mirroring bones, joints, muscles and tendons. It has a silicone socket, attaching the hand to Taylor's arm. The hand can also be covered with a glove to match the patients natural skin tone.

Hills said, “Traditionally, upper limb sockets are made from rigid materials such as glass fibre. We have, however, developed 100 percent silicone sockets which are proving to be much more comfortable due to their flexibility, especially around bony areas such as the elbow.”

 

Share
Share

Featured Articles

Johnson & Johnson: Turning supplier spend into local support

Johnson & Johnson’s Global Supplier Diversity & Inclusion team is growing spending with social enterprises around the globe to expand its impact

Seasonal Affective Disorder’s impact on health & solutions

Dr Ravi Gill & Dr. Naomi Newman-Beinart discuss Seasonal Affective Disorder and its treatments, from vitamin D spray to light therapy

CGI teams up with Totalmobile for digital healthcare service

CGI is driving efficiency in healthcare. Hear from Helena Jochberger, at Manufacturing Digital LIVE, a free virtual event on Wednesday 6th December 2023

Deloitte: generative AI can improve access to healthcare

Technology & AI

Wipro & NVIDIA’s revolutionary healthcare uses generative AI

AI & ML

Healthtech platform CoverSelf extends seed round to US$8.2m

Technology & AI