Neuro rehab technology
A non-invasive spinal stimulation system controlled by hand movements enables people with paraplegia to regain stepping control. The technique uses electrical signals from hand muscles to trigger magnetic stimulation of the lumbar spinal cord, allowing patients to initiate and control leg movements. By performing rhythmic hand grips, participants with spinal cord injury were able to [...]
A brain-computer interface device has received FDA approval to begin human trials for speech restoration in paralysed patients. The Connexus BCI system will be tested in participants with severe motor impairment who have lost the ability to speak and move their limbs. The device is designed to record and decode brain signals, allowing users to [...]
Onward Medical has secured FDA 510(k) clearance expanding ARC-EX for home use, widening access to non-invasive spinal cord stimulation for people with upper-limb deficits after spinal cord injury. ARC-EX spinal cord stimulation therapy delivers targeted, programmed electrical stimulation through the skin to the spinal cord. Electrodes placed on the back of the neck provide non-invasive [...]
North East sports safety company Rezon has launched a £1m crowdfunding round to speed up international expansion of its concussion-reducing headband. The firm's flagship product, Halos, is a CE and UKCA certified protective headband designed to reduce concussion and sub-concussion risk in contact and collision sports. Sub-concussive impacts are smaller repeated blows to the head [...]
A simple walking test that times how quickly people turn could flag Parkinson's nearly nine years before diagnosis. The finding could help spot patients in the prodromal phase – the earliest stage when brain damage starts but symptoms are subtle. This window can last years before tremor and movement problems prompt diagnosis. The [...]
A new $1.75 million joint venture will fund and scale breakthrough technologies designed to transform the lives of people living with neurological conditions. The programme, a collaboration between Australian disability services provider MSWA and Founders Factory, will back and fast-track global startups developing cutting-edge solutions, including the use of AI, robotics and wearables that address [...]
A study has identified a shared brain-signalling mechanism in Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases, revealing a possible common cause behind their neurodegenerative symptoms. Researchers discovered a molecular pathway that disrupts communication between brain cells in both conditions, improving understanding of how their symptoms are produced. The disruption occurs at synapses — junctions between nerve cells where [...]
A study using wearable brain-scanning technology has revealed how brain function differs in people with multiple sclerosis. This research marks the first use of a newly developed technique called OPM-MEG in MS, demonstrating its potential to study neurological disease. OPM-MEG (magnetoencephalography with optically pumped magnetometers) measures electrical brain activity in real time by detecting magnetic [...]
Researchers have received US$4.4m to conduct a world-first study of prefrontal cortical stimulation in severe bipolar disorder. The funding, from Breakthrough Discoveries for Thriving with Bipolar Disorder (BD²), will support research into how large-scale brain networks regulate mood and how manipulating these networks may contribute to shifts between depression and mania – the extreme mood [...]
A drug that promotes nerve growth in adult human brain cells could offer a new way to aid recovery after spinal cord injury. The compound, thiorphan, increased neurite outgrowth — the extensions that connect nerve cells — in adult human brain cells and improved hand function by 50 per cent in rats with spinal injuries. [...]
