Put Your Mind to It: Researcher to Give Presentation on Thought-Controlled Prosthetic Devices (2/22/2008)

There really is something to the phrase "mind over matter." Just ask Dr. Todd Kuiken, researcher from Northwestern University, whose work gives hope to amputees.

Thought-controlled prosthetic devices have been an exciting development in the effort to provide mobility to wounded veterans and other victims of limb loss, and Kuiken has been on the forefront of this effort since his undergraduate days.

Kuiken, who also works for the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, will talk about the "Development of a Neural-Machine Connection for Improved Function of Artificial Limbs" on Friday, March 7, at 3:30 p.m. in the Whitewater Room of the Idaho Commons. The lecture is part of the University of Idaho's Robert and Floretta Austin Distinguished Lecture in Science.

Simply put, Kuiken will describe how bioengineers and doctors are advancing the technology that allows amputees to move artificial limbs with their minds, via nerve transfers and sensors on the skin.

Kuiken got his start at the University of Idaho in 1978, where he studied electrical engineering as an undergraduate. Soon after, he departed to Duke University for his bachelor's degree in biomedical engineering, followed by doctoral and medical degrees from Northwestern University. He completed his residency in physical medicine and rehabilitation at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago in 1995.

Since the 1980s, Kuiken has worked on developing more advanced prosthetic limbs simply because there is a need for them. His inventions are a remarkable advance that not only improves control of the artificial arm, but may allow the amputee to feel with a prosthetic hand as if it were in their own hand. His first patient was Jesse Sullivan, a power company employee who lost both arms in an electrical accident. Kuiken used Sullivan as a test patient, hooking more than 100 sensors up to Sullivan's nerves to track and record his movements and nerve signals.

After crunching the numbers, Kuiken was able to differentiate the mild differences between forearm and bicep nerve signals, for example, and create a device that can interpret these signals and move the limbs accordingly. His inventions are now so robust that Sullivan can garden, paint and use tools.

He said his latest research, though, has proved that doctors can successfully "re-wire" the human body to create a more natural control of a prosthetic device, and provide the added benefit of sensory feedback. Boiled down, this means patients will soon be able to differentiate hot, cold, smooth and rough surfaces through their artificial limbs.

Kuiken has received numerous awards and recognitions for his development of thought-controlled prosthetic devices. He also wears many hats as a professor at Northwestern University and a director of several programs at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago.

Note: This story has been adapted from a news release issued by the University of Idaho

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