What is the future of the prosthetics industry?

At our recent Back to the Future Rehabilitation Conference, we were delighted to welcome Professor Saeed Zahedi OBE, from prosthetics manufacturer Blatchford, to talk about advances in the prosthetics industry.

Among many other interesting insights, he told us that he expects innovation in the sector to ramp up to unprecedented levels over the next couple of years compared to the previous 10-15 years. This, he believes, is thanks to young, bold and visionary engineers who are starting to tackle problems and challenges in unique and creative ways.

So we wanted to further investigate just a few of the amazing innovations and the technological progress taking place that are going to - or are already - helping amputees reach new levels of comfort, control and mobility.

Bionic limbs

The term ‘bionic’ refers to anatomical structures or physiological processes that are replaced or enhanced by electronic or mechanical components. It brings to mind words like ‘cyborg’ and ‘android’, and, while the industry isn’t quite turning everything into a scene from a sci-fi movie, it is actually the case that bionics are starting to have a big impact for us humans.

Scientists and experts around the world have been busy developing bionic limbs for a number of years now. Back in 2011, leading prosthesis manufacturer Össur launched its Symbionic Leg, dubbed the world’s first commercially available bionic leg.

Now on its third version, the leg is an integrated unit that combines a microprocessor knee and a bionic ankle with powered ankle flexion. It has on-board artificial intelligence systems and motion sensors “to quickly learn its user's walking style and make real-time adjustments according to changes in speed, stride or surface.”

According to Popular Mechanics, the leg also has a ‘stumble recovery mode’ to reduce the risk and frequency of falls, and also helps to eliminate other medical problems caused by an amputation and wearing of a prosthetic leg.

It’s not just legs that are getting the bionic treatment. Many bionic arms have been in development for a number of years now, including the DEKA ‘Luke’ (spoiler alert: named after Luke Skywalker’s cybernetic hand in Star Wars).

The DEKA arm was approved in 2014 by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to be sold to members of the public. It contains electrodes that are attached to the muscles of the wearer, which send electrical signals caused by the contraction of those muscles. An in-built computer processor then ‘translates’ the signals into 10 different movements, all of which are significantly more complex than is possible with a regular prosthetic arm. Find out more about the DEKA ‘Luke’ arm in the video below:

Scientists in Canada have gone one step further by developing a system and bionic hand that gives the wearer the sensation of being able to ‘feel’ their fingers. Watch the video below for more information.

Osseointegration

The term osseointegration refers to a structural and functional connection between living bone and an implant - in this case a prosthesis.

It requires a titanium implant - a ‘fixture’ - to be threaded into the marrow space of the bone of the residual limb, so that it will eventually become infused with the bone. Another item, called an ‘abutment’, is then attached to the fixture around six months later. The abutment is eventually attached to the prosthesis.

Although the procedure was first carried out in the 1990s for amputees, it is still not particularly widespread. However, experts, including Professor Michael Saleh, who spoke at the Back to the Future conference, expect it to become more and more common, as it offers a range of benefits. According to the Amputee Coalition, they include:

• Easy to put on and take off prosthesis
• Comfort when sitting (for leg amputees)
• No prosthesis socket required - reduced pain, irritation or discomfort as a result of there being no socket
• Increase in bone and muscle mass
• A more natural sensation of the prosthetic limb

3D-printed prostheses

A recent innovation that has the potential to revolutionise the prosthetics industry is 3D printing. The printing method has risen to prominence over the past few years, allowing people to print solid, 3D objects from a digital file. And the technique is expected to have a huge impact on both the availability and cost of prostheses.

One example of the innovators making use of this technology is Plymouth-based firm Open Bionics, led by inventor Joel Gibbard. In 2015 the company won the UK round of the James Dyson Award (alongside nominations for many other awards) after designing a 3D-printed bionic hand that will cost around £2,000 including fitting.

The lower price point doesn’t mean these prostheses aren’t advanced, though. In fact, it was recently announced that German athlete Denise Schindler is set to be the first cyclist to compete with a fully 3D-printed prosthetic leg at the upcoming 2016 Rio Paralympic Games. Speaking to Dezeen, Paul Sohi, in-house product designer at Autodesk, who will print the leg, said:

We’re at a stage technology-wise to initiate a paradigm shift in this industry.

The future today

It’s clear that recent developments in technology have already helped to usher in an exciting new age for the industry - what many would consider the ‘future’ of prosthetics is actually already here.

Experts expect that we will soon start to see - on a large scale - the benefits of these innovations and the results of the work being carried out every day by some of the most intelligent and creative engineers and designers in the world.

We can’t wait to see what the future holds for the prosthetics industry, knowing about all the amazing things that are already being achieved.