New prosthetic system ‘restores sense of touch’

Scientists in the US have developed a new prosthetic system that promises to restore tactile sensations and relieve phantom pain in amputees.

The Case Western Reserve University team, whose research appears in the October 8th edition of Science Translational Medicine, has successfully trialled the technology on two patients, both of whom lost hands in accidents.

It uses electrical signals to stimulate the nerves in the arm and, in turn, the regions of the brain that respond to touch.

In one of the test subjects, the system was so effective that he experienced goose bumps on his arm when his prosthetic hand was brushed with cotton balls – a sensation consistent with his response to feeling the fabric on skin.

The scientists also made a further unexpected discovery: in both patients, the technology had the side-effect of eliminating phantom pain, which one participant described as "a vice crushing his closed fist".

"Our goal is not just to restore function, but to build a reconnection to the world," commented Dustin Tyler, director of the research. "This is long-lasting, chronic restoration of sensation over multiple points across the hand."